When Bush’s first round of massive tax cuts passed in 2001, they included a bizarre little catch — they expire after 10 years. This “sunset” clause was part of the White House plan in order to hide the true cost of the cuts, making them appear less expensive. It was, even for this gang, a shameless and indefensible stunt.<\/p>\n
Of course, that was several years ago, at a time of record-high surpluses created during Clinton’s presidency. Now we have spiraling debt and record-high deficits, coupled by an administration plan to cut the deficit in half that actually makes the deficit bigger<\/a>. Is the White House prepared to let the tax cuts, which disproportionately benefited the wealthy, expire to help keep the nation’s fiscal outlook from getting considerably worse? Just the opposite; the White House is pushing to make the tax cuts permanent. <\/p>\n If successful, the price tag, including interest, would cost the nation as much as $2 trillion<\/a> over the next decade. Apparently, it’s enough to make even a few Republicans think twice<\/a>.<\/p>\n Some Republicans already are balking at his Social Security overhaul because of its high transition costs. And even some Bush loyalists — including Sen. Pete V. Domenici (R-N.M.), former chairman of the Senate Budget Committee — are having second thoughts about Bush’s proposal to make his tax cuts permanent.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n