Obama signs "fiscal cliff" bill into law

President Obama steps off Air Force One upon arrival at Hickam Air Force Base near Honolulu, Hawaii, Jan. 2, 2013. / Getty

HONOLULU President Obama signed a bill late Wednesday night boosting taxes on the wealthiest Americans, while preserving tax cuts for most American households.

The bill, which averts a looming fiscal cliff that had threatened to plunge the nation back into recession, also extends expiring jobless benefits, prevents cuts in Medicare reimbursements to doctors and delays for two months billions of dollars in across-the-board spending cuts in defense and domestic programs.

The GOP-run House approved the measure by a 257-167 vote late Tuesday, nearly 24 hours after the Democratic-led Senate passed it 89-8.

Obama, who is vacationing in Hawaii, signed the bill using an autopen, a mechanical device that copies his signature.

• 4 surprise tax perks in "fiscal cliff" deal
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"Cliff" deal loaded with special interest tax breaks

The "fiscal cliff" law passed so quickly, many in Congress never realized it was full of special interest tax breaks, reports CBS News correspondent Wyatt Andrews.

One allows auto racetrack owners to speed up their tax deductions. Another tax write off goes to Hollywood -- a $20 million break anytime a TV show or movie is shot in an economically depressed area of the United States.

There's a subsidy for rum made in Puerto Rico, a tax break if you train a mine rescue worker, and a tax credit for every kilowatt of electricity produced by wind.

All told, the fiscal cliff law designed to reduce the deficit, added $74 billion in spending through changes in the tax law.

[LISABRNC]

You know???? We the people are sick and tired of our government.... It all began with the deregulation of the banking industry where greed and corruption ran rampant! This is the way I see it...The middle class gets JABBED, Again!! By the time you figure the 35% I have paid for YEARS , each year, in taxes then add the 2% that I will lose each BI-WEEKLY from my paycheck beginning 2013 due to the payroll tax/social security tax increase....IT will be equivalent to paying 40% at tax time! So much; for the 98% of Americans who didn't get a tax increase this year. WHO DO YOU REALLY THINK YOU ARE KIDDING????? ALL will answer to a bigger manager, one day. I pray that GOD helps you then, just the way you have governed and helped the American people that you represent! Don't ask for a PAT on the back, FROM THIS AMERICAN!
In my estimation; this is the breakdown that MIDDLE CLASS Americans will pay per bi-weekly paycheck based on annual salaries:
$20,000 - 4.2 rate: $840 a year, 6.2 rate: $1,240 - $16 more
$30,000 - 4.2 rate: $1,260 a year, 6.2 rate: $1,860 - $25 more
$40,000 - 4.2 rate: $1,680 a year, 6.2 rate: $2,480 - $33 more
$50,000 - 4.2 rate: $2,100 a year, 6.2 rate: $3,100 - $42 more
$60,000 - 4.2 rate: $2,520 a year, 6.2 rate: $3,720 - $50 more
$70,000 - 4.2 rate: $2,940 a year, 6.2 rate: $4340 -> $58 more SO DON'T TELL ME THAT THE MIDDLE CLASS GOT A BRRRREEEEEAAAAAKKKKK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Considering my rant above; I believe that each complaint should bear a fruitful plan of correction! I am so seriously SO SERIOUSLY considering this mustard seed plan of mine.....to buy a tent, drop off the grid, take a cash job or work for cash. As the plan hatches, I pay no rent, no taxes, take a job that earns 40 or 50% less (or even GOD willing exactly what I make now per year) and guess WHAT? Now I would take home and keep 100% of my wages!! HOW DOES THAT SOUND President Obama and John Boehner!!!!!!!!!!!! I even know where this little settlement is located!!! HOUSING FOR THE PEOPLE BY THE PEOPLE! Run by an ex-Mayor who was in a car accident, his wife and child were hospitalized for months, who ended up losing both his wife and child, went into financial ruin due to the exorbitant medical costs, and started this settlement! They thrive; take care of their own (especially the weak, sick, elderly and the young), no taxes, no food stamps, no Medicare or Medicaid (SSA, SSD or SSI).

[cubscout09]

Hopefully, this will make everyone who invested for their retirement, happy. I just got an email from my financial consultant. HR8 has created three progressive tax brackets for capital gains and dividends.

10% income tax bracket = 0% capital gains rate.
15% income tax bracket = 0% capital gains rate.

25% income tax bracket = 15% capital gains rate.
28% income tax bracket = 15% capital gains rate.
33% income tax bracket = 15% capital gains rate.
35% income tax bracket = 15% capital gains rate.

39.6% income tax bracket = 20% capital gains rate.

For those who are moderates, Romney proposed two progressive capital gains tax brackets. 0% & 15%. I wonder if President Obama and Former Governor Romney discussed this over Southwestern Turkey Salad?

[sjc_1]

Republican refused to renew Pay As You Go in 2003, which started the huge deficit spending. Now they need to see how they are going to pay for unemployment benefits and hurricane relief. Can you say "revenue"?

[cubscout09]

As Governor Christie so acidly pointed out, New Jersey and New York contribute far more in federal taxes than they get back in federal funding. All that would have to be done is take some of NJ's and NY's money back from the Red states and there's your funding.

For criminey sakes, what are we, a socialist nation???

[logictoo]

According to The President the national debt doesn't matter in the short term(source: David Letterman Show). The President didn't say how long "the short term" is. Letterman didn't ask, that would have been a tough question and everybody knows "This President" has enough on his plate already.

[disinterested-3rd-party]

All of this could be prevented if the U.S. had a balanced budget amendment, but nobody seems to care.....

[taxed01]

Tax and Spend. Tax and Spend. Tax and Spend. Tax and Spend. Tax and Spend. Tax and Spend. Tax and Spend. Tax and Spend. Tax and Spend. Tax and Spend......

[Rafterman11]

The GOP version is "Don't tax and spend".

[john92021]

why no line item veto for pork? Rhetorical.

[cubscout09]

Actually, that would have been AWESOME!!!

HR8 arrives at the Senate, with the original 5 page bill and 16 pages of political rhetoric and complicated, cumbersome and totally unnecessary rules (Sounds like co-sponsor Paul Ryan's writing style) about how the bill is to be debated in the Senate.

HR8 arrives back at the house with 133 additional pages!

The House has two choices, vote on the bill as is, which they did. Or, let some chucklehead add yet another amendment to repeal Obamacare, in which case the whole game goes in the toilet.

Three fiscally conservative Democrats from Oregon voted against the bill as it simply kicks the can down the road. I understand that this was a calculated, symbollic gesture, but, it concerns me that my Blue Dog Representaive took a chance on there being a total conflagaration. As I understood, let's agree on what we agree on, let's not hold the Middle class hostage and let's take care of spending cuts on a 1:1 ratio with new tax revenue.

[nomorepoliticalbs]

lets not forget all the illegals he allowed in the country that doesn't pay taxes but get everything for free, the blood suckers that don't pay taxes but get everything for free, the thugs and gangs that don't pay taxes but get everything for free. Yes thats right Obama of shame you got your wish and now if we can all just NOT PAY TAXES then what they going to do, put a billion in jail!!!! We need to boycott, rally up, grow some and fight back against this socialism that he is going to do to this country

[thechooch1]

nomore have you even checked to see that more "illegals" were deported under President Obama's first four years that were deported under eight years of the past failed administration? All of these rants from you have no substance in fact, just hatred.

[Smilestoo]

The middle-class does not escape because they have to pay more payroll taxes. The only ones that won are the lazy, because they don't pay any taxes, and they get to keep all of their freebees.

[Think4times]

So many of you that post on CBS love to call other people "libs" and blame them for our fiscal problems..

I have yet to meet a fiscal liberal.. nobody as far as I know is OK with the extreme government spending..

[nomorepoliticalbs]

he didn't win with the majority of votes, "the military didn't get to vote", he won from the illegals, the blood suckers of the govt, and because we have the dumbest voting there is, if you look at the states, he only won where he needed to, the rest of the states voted romney, so he won, not by majority of vote, he won because of the dumb voting we have and all his extended families he con into getting on welfare, food stamps and illegals

[thechooch1]

nomore what planet do you live on? With uneducated statements like "the military didn't get to vote" and "he won from illegals", "so he won, not by majority of vote" you show you haven't even looked at the numbers. First off in my country, the USA, military vote at home or by absentee, Illegals can't vote as they aren't citizens, and your President got over three million more popular votes that Romney. Not to mention the landslide in the Electoral College.

[Smilestoo]

Per Romney's son, Romney did not want to be President. No country needs or wants a leader that does not want to be the leader. So Obama winning is the best for this country.