WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama mounted a hard sell Tuesday for his proposed tax-cut compromise, moving to quell a growing rebellion among congressional Democrats while appealing directly to the American people about the economic urgency of a deal that mostly pleases Republicans.
Congressional Democrats have yet to embrace the nearly $900 billion deal, and opposition within the president’s own party could force the administration to try to enact the tax-cuts package with a bipartisan coalition made up mostly of Republicans.
Underscoring the ambivalence, congressional leaders had yet to schedule votes by late Tuesday in either the House or Senate. Lawmakers met behind closed doors into the evening to assess what leverage, if any, they have to alter the proposal.
“It’s very troubling for all of us,” said Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., the No. 4 man in party leadership. The deal would extend the Bush-era tax cuts across the board, even for the wealthiest earners, which angered liberals.
“I think a ransom was paid, and it was a very high price,” said Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., among the wealthiest members of Congress. “I don’t give a damn about a tax cut. I’d rather have a strong country than to get a few bucks back on my taxes.”
Obama joined in the criticism of the tax cut for wealthy earners, which would cost $68 billion a year in government revenue.
But he said there was no way to prevent it while ensuring that middle-class Americans retained their tax cuts and unemployed Americans continued receiving benefits.
“I’ve said before that I felt that the middle-class tax cuts were being held hostage to the high-end tax cuts. I think it’s tempting not to negotiate with hostage-takers, unless the hostage gets harmed,” Obama said at a White House news conference. “In this case, the hostage was the American people, and I was not willing to see them get harmed.”
Obama dispatched Vice President Joe Biden to meet with lawmakers. At a closed-door lunch on Capitol Hill, Biden framed the issue as “a bad situation and a good deal,” those present said.
Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., said it was a “rowdy” and “raucous” gathering.
“He was warmly received — and challenged,” said Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb.
Republicans have largely signed on to the package, especially after also extracting a revamped estate tax that will raise the exemption to $5 million for singles and $10 million for couples.
“I’m very hopeful and optimistic that a large majority of members of the Republican Conference will find this proposal worth supporting,” said Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader.
“And I’m hopeful that the Democratic leaders will be able to convince their members, as well, that this is the way to go forward and the right thing to do.”
But as Democrats wrestled with the proposed deal, Obama warned them against taking rigid positions that lead only to gridlock.
“People will have the satisfaction of having a purist position and no victories for the American people,” he said, comparing criticism of the deal to liberal complaints that the landmark new health care law did not go far enough.
Members of the White House economic team told senators there would be dire economic consequences without the package.
Unemployment aid already has run out for hundreds of thousands of jobless Americans, and tax cuts that had been approved during George W. Bush’s presidency expire Dec. 31, as do others that were part of last year’s economic-stimulus bill, leading to a tax hike on nearly every taxpayer without action.
Under concessions from Republicans in the deal, Americans will see a continuation of college-tuition and child tax credits and a new 2 percent cut in the payroll tax that will put up to $2,000 in every worker’s pocket.
“What this package does is provide an additional boost that is substantially more significant than I think most economic forecasters had expected,” Obama said during the news conference. “And, in fact, you’ve already seen some, just over the last 24 hours, suggest that we may see faster growth and more job growth as a consequence of this package.”
The bulk of the package is not offset by revenues or spending cuts elsewhere, presenting another obstacle to deficit-weary lawmakers battered in midterm elections by voters concerned over spending and debt.
Many lawmakers railed against tax breaks for the wealthy while on the campaign trail. So voting in favor of them now would necessitate another deft political pivot.
“The president and Democrats, in both the House and the Senate, have been very clear on our position that at a time when the deficit is at unacceptable levels, giving tax cuts to high-income Americans is not appropriate,” said Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., the House majority leader.
