National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman John Ensign (Nev.) and Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) on Wednesday both opposed Democrats’ plans for a second economic stimulus package during November’s lame-duck session.
On a conference call with reporters about Chambliss’s Dec. 2 runoff election, Ensign said Republicans will oppose dramatic new spending but would endorse cutting the capital gains tax rate.
Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has said he wants to bring a second stimulus plan before the Senate during the chamber’s session next week. Republicans lost several seats in the chamber earlier this month but can still effectively block Democratic legislation until the new Congress takes office in January.
Instead of new spending, Ensign called for cutting tax rates to allow corporations to make money overseas and transfer that money back to the U.S. at lower tax rates.
“If just means more spending, it’s not something I would support,” Ensign said.
Chambliss agreed but added that the first stimulus package passed last spring was clearly ineffective.
“We tried to just write checks from a fund that just adds to the deficit. It didn’t work,” he said. “It doesn’t make sense to take a failed philosophy and put more money behind that philosophy.”
–J. Taylor Rushing