DeLay names his price for expanded child tax credit for working poor

We’ve known for a week that House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas) would demand a bigger, broader tax cut bill to go along with Democratic demands to expand the child tax credit to the working poor.

Yesterday, he named his price: $82 billion in tax cuts, on top of the $350 billion tax cut plan passed just last month.

As you know, it would cost $3.5 billion to restore the child tax credit for those low-income families left behind by the Republicans’ last tax plan. The Senate has already moved on the Democratic plan, passing a $10 billion tax cut, including the expanded tax credit, last week.

DeLay, however, has a bigger cut in mind. He acknowledged that some would prefer a bill dealing only with the child credit, but said that “ain’t going to happen.” He also recognized that White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer indicated that the president wants the House to pass the Senate version, but DeLay said, “The last time I checked, [Fleischer] doesn’t have a vote.”

The vote on the $82 billion tax cut plan is scheduled for tomorrow.

It may pass the way DeLay has crafted it, the GOP caucus in the House is voting more and more in lock step, but I really doubt the Senate would go for another $82 billion in tax cuts so soon after barely passing a $350 billion plan.

Maybe DeLay is taking his chances hoping the conference committee will split the difference, and he can still end up with a $40 billion cut. Or maybe DeLay wants the whole plan to fail because he doesn’t care about expanding the child tax credit, so he’s intentionally supporting an unrealistic bill. Or maybe DeLay is callous right-winger whose interest in public service is limited to helping wealthy GOP contributors and religious fundamentalists.