White House Gives In On Bush Tax Cuts

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama's top adviser suggested to The Huffington Post late Wednesday that the administration is ready to accept an across-the-board, temporary continuation of steep Bush-era tax cuts, including those for the wealthiest taxpayers.

That appears to be the only way, said David Axelrod, that middle-class taxpayers can keep their tax cuts, given the legislative and political realities facing Obama in the aftermath of last week's electoral defeat.

"We have to deal with the world as we find it," Axelrod said during an unusually candid and reflective 90-minute interview in his office, steps away from the Oval Office. "The world of what it takes to get this done."

"There are concerns," he added, that Congress will continue to kick the can down the road in the future by passing temporary extensions for the wealthy time and time again. "But I don't want to trade away security for the middle class in order to make that point."

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So..... Get ready for the biggest belt-tightening ever.  There is already a 5% across the board reduction in all government budget that will go into effect in February. That is not going to be anywhere close to enough to balance out the lack of funding stream resulting form not taxing the $250k+ income stream.

Meanwhile, do not expect that the rich will plough back the money into the U.S.  It's simply not happening in the present economy.

It's going to be a brutal year or two ahead.  Very sad.