Obama deficit plan to have cuts to Medicare, Medicaid and a tax hike for millionaires

The New York Times: Obama Tax Plan Would Ask More Of Millionaires
President Obama on Monday will call for a new minimum tax rate for individuals making more than $1 million a year to ensure that they pay at least the same percentage of their earnings as middle-income taxpayers, according to administration officials. With a special joint Congressional committee starting work to reach a bipartisan budget deal by late November, the proposal adds a new and populist feature to Mr. Obama's effort to raise the political pressure on Republicans to agree to higher revenues from the wealthy in return for Democrats' support of future cuts from Medicare and Medicaid (Calmes, 9/17). 

The Wall Street Journal: Obama To Propose Tougher Tax Regime For Wealthy
The White House on Monday plans to launch an effort to prevent millionaires from paying lower tax rates than middle-class Americans as part of its package of ideas to reduce the federal deficit, two people familiar with the plan said. ... President Barack Obama is expected to call for a steeper reduction in the deficit. To reach that goal, Mr. Obama is expected to call for $300 billion in savings from changes to Medicare and Medicaid, a person familiar with the proposal said. He won't, though, call for changes to Social Security as a way of reducing the deficit. On taxes, he'll call for lower, flatter tax rates, while also pushing for some tax increases (Paletta and Lee, 9/18). 

Politico: Obama's 'Buffett Rule' To Call For Higher Tax Rate For Millionaires
Democrats have balked at the idea of accepting cuts to entitlement programs without forcing Republicans to agree to new tax revenue. The proposal is certain to energize the progressive base, which has wanted Obama to draw sharper contrast with Republicans for defending tax breaks for the wealthy. House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) reiterated his party's no-new-taxes mantra during a speech last week at the Economic Club of Washington. Tax increases "are not a viable option," Boehner said (Budoff Brown, 9/17).

The Washington Post: Obama To Call For New Minimum Tax Rate For Millionaires
On Monday, Obama is expected to repeat the offer he made Boehner to find significant savings in Medicare and Medicaid, though it was unclear whether he would once again propose raising the Medicare eligibility age. ... Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), a member of the debt-reduction panel, said the group will be looking at a variety of tax reform proposals and that the millionaire's tax "should definitely be in the mix" (Montgomery, 9/17). 

Politico: Ryan: 'Buffett Rule' Class Warfare
House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan is ripping President Barack Obama's plan to raise taxes on the rich, calling it "class warfare." ... Ryan warned that the blueprint -- dubbed the "Buffett Rule" after billion investor Warren Buffett -- would stifle job creation and add to uncertainty and instability in the nation's economy, and indicated that it would meet opposition from House Republicans (Isenstad, 9/18). 

Christian Science Monitor: Cuts to Medicare? Progressives Anxious Ahead Of Obama's Deficit Plan.
All eyes will be on President Obama when he unveils his latest deficit-reduction plan Monday. But this time around, the reaction of the Democratic left – his political base – may be more important than that of the Republicans. ... The new plan will contain no changes to Social Security, the White House has already said. But no such announcement has come on other entitlements, and progressives are anxious (Feldman, 9/16).