Politics

Clinton Vows Veto Of Marriage Tax Relief

By CBSNews.com staff CBSNews.com staff

February 10, 2000 / 5:24 PM EST / CBS

On Friday, President Clinton promised to veto a Republican bill that eliminates the so-called marriage tax penalty - a quirk in the tax laws that forces many young people to pay higher taxes if they marry. But the president maintains the bill's benefits are tilted toward families in the top one percent income range, and it and other GOP tax cuts would consume surplus dollars that could be used better for priorities such as paying off the public debt and providing a Medicare prescription drug benefit.

"In the interest of fiscal responsibility, I will veto this and any subsequent legislation that threatens our ability to pay down the debt and strengthen Medicare and Social Security," the president said in a written statement.

By a vote of 60-39, the Senate on Tuesday approved the measure, a centerpiece of the Republican drive for election-year tax cuts. It would provide $248 billion in tax relief over 10 years.

Republicans call the bill a "tax correction," but Democrats say it's just another election-year ploy to help the wealthy.

The Senate Majority Leader all but dared the president to veto it. "Now it's going to be clear, very clear Mr. President," said Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss. "Are you for eliminating the marriage penalty tax or not? Sign it."

The GOP does not have enough votes to override a presidential veto. But vetoing such a bill could prove costly politically, especially with Democrats hoping to retake the House of Representatives.

The bill would remedy features of the tax code that force 25 million married couples to pay higher income taxes than single people, mainly by enlarging the bottom 15 percent tax bracket and increasing the standard tax deduction for couples filing jointly. But it would also cut taxes for millions more couples who now enjoy a marriage "bonus" because one spouse earns the bulk of the family income.

Republicans claim the measure would save the average married couple $1,400 a year, reports CBS News White House Correspondent Bill Plante.

Marriage penalty relief is just one in a series of tax cuts Republicans have pushed through in recent weeks. This year, instead of introducing one all-inclusive tax-cut bill, like the one that failed last year, congressional Republicans are scoring points by introducing the cuts one at a time. And they're offering the tax cuts in a form some Democrats can support - marriage penalty relief, elimination of the estate tax and a proposal to cut the tax on some social security benefits.

Democratic leaders have mounted a furious battle to regain the offensive.

A Treasury Department analysis claims that the Republicans give the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans a tax cut 84 times as large as they give an average family.

"When it comes to taxes, Republicans haven't changed their tune," House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt, D-Mo. "They are more interested in taking care of their wealthy friends than woking families."

"It's very clear that the Republicans in Congress have decided to put aside their responsibilities and play politics," says White House spokesman Joe Lockhart.

Republicans shrug off the charge that this is all election-year politics.

"We have work to do and we're going to do it," says Lott. "He may not approve of the way we do it. Some people would say it sounds like politics. Well, it is a political season."