Locals disagree on D.C. tax deal

LYNN – Calling it “a good deal for the American people,” President Barack Obama is staunchly defending a deal with Republicans in the U.S. Senate that continues George W. Bush’s tax-cut policies for the wealthy while extending unemployment benefits to the jobless.Although the plan was met with outrage by some Congressional Democrats, U.S. Rep. John F. Tierney is among those seeking immediate approval of extending federal unemployment benefits as well as a one-time $250 payment to Social Security recipients.”I strongly believe that swift action must be taken to help our seniors and those unemployed Americans who are searching for work,” said Tierney, a Salem Democrat, in a statement to The Daily Item.The congressman urged House and Senate leaders to stay focused on working to help the jobless and financially stressed.A letter signed to the House majority leader signed by Tierney and other members of Congress stated, “As you know, while our nation continues to recover from the worst economic climate since the Great Depression, unemployment remains unacceptably high. For our fellow Americans, who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own, it would be unconscionable to terminate vital unemployment benefits during the holiday season.”Further, since the Social Security Administration announced there will be no cost-of-living adjustment this year, it became imperative that Congress enact a one-time $250 payment to offset the loss, the letter said.According to Tierney, approximately 54 million Americans rely on Social Security income to make ends meet.Tierney has not decided how he will vote on the proposal.”I’m disappointed that the proposed compromise continues to ensure additional tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires at a time when our economy is so strained,” he said in the statement.James Barton of Lynn, a disabled retiree, said compromise by the executive office is often a necessity.”I understand the ugly scenes people make about it, but he can’t fight with everyone. Sometimes you have to compromise” he said. “If the world were perfect, he would not have to do that.”Ethel Elfman, a Lynn retiree, questioned Obama’s change of stance on eliminating the Bush tax cut for those who annually earn more than $250,000. “How can you say you’re going to take it away and then agree to let them keep it? I don’t agree with it,” she said. “He’s trying to make us like him.”Several senior citizens scoffed at the promise of a one-time $250 Social Security payment in lieu of the lost cost-of-living increase, but Rose Kinnect of Winthrop differed.”I think it’s better that we get the money all at once,” she said. “Otherwise, it just comes in your check and it’s gone.”During a press conference Tuesday, Obama said, “I’m not here to play games with the American people or the health of our economy. My job is to do whatever I can to get this economy moving.”The agreement, should it find adequate support in Congress, would extend tax cuts to all income levels, including those who earn more than $250,000. It would extend for 13 months the unemployment benefits paid to jobless workers that expired earlier this month, a deadline that affected 60,000 people in Massachusetts. It would also extend a mix of tax breaks and trim payroll tax by two percent, changes that are expected provide about $800 to the average worker earning $40,000.The deal is expect to cost taxpayers $900 billion, about half of which would be used to temporarily extend the Bush-era tax cuts.