Nevada Republicans hail Bush’s proposal

Benjamin Grove

Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2003 | 11 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- Nevada Republicans in Congress hailed the economic plan President Bush unveiled Tuesday as the best plan for Nevadans. Democrats said their plan was better, as a new session of Congress -- and a war of words over dueling economic proposals -- got under way.

Bush's plan would speed up tax relief slated for implementation later in the decade for married couples, families with children and small businesses, GOP officials said.

According to figures from Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., this year under the Bush plan:

"If you want economic stimulus, you put money back in the hands of taxpayers," Gibbons said.

Gibbons said the GOP plan creates jobs by offering corporations tax breaks, which can be plowed back into business expansions and job growth. Among the highlights of the Bush plan is elimination of a tax on dividends paid to shareholders, Gibbons said. That money is "double-taxed," first as income, then again as a paid dividend, he said.

But Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., blasted the GOP plan. He said the bulk -- roughly $500 billion -- of the nearly $700 billion Bush plan would benefit the wealthy and corporate America.

"The Bush plan does nothing for Nevadans," Reid said.

Reid scoffed at Bush's claim that his plan would give a typical family of four earning $39,000 a total $1,100 in tax relief.

"I don't know how they came up with that," Reid said. "It's the most blatant example of statistical manipulation -- it just isn't there."

Reid said Bush's plan fails to: offer short-term stimulus to the economy; offer significant middle-class tax relief; and offer a smart approach to deficit reduction.

Democrats are bracing for battle in the new GOP-controlled Congress, Reid said.

"We're not going to roll over and play dead, I can tell you that," Reid said.

Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., said that as with most proposals, Bush's plan is likely to be changed by the House and Senate. But he said the 10-year, $674 billion Bush plan was a good blueprint because it would jolt the economy more than the Democrats' plan, which would cost about one-fifth as much.

House Democrats unveiled a 10-year $136 billion plan Monday that offers taxpayers a $300 tax credit and offers shorter term benefits for small businesses and state governments.

"You've got to have something significant if you are going to stimulate the economy, with the size of our economy," Ensign said. He called the House Democratic plan "not even a drop in the bucket."

Ensign said the president's plan puts more tax money back in people's pockets, which helps Nevada.

"We're so dependent on people's discretionary income," Ensign said. "This will help the state's budget."

Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., one of the 24 House Democratic regional whips, took to the airwaves Tuesday afternoon to debate the economic proposals with Rep. Christopher Cox, R-Calif., on the cable channel MSNBC. She argued that Bush's plan was a rehash of what he has already tried: tax cuts that don't amount to real economic stimulus.

"The Republican plan is fiscally irresponsible at a time that we are looking at huge budget deficits, and this would add $600 billion to that," Berkley said in an interview today. Bush's plan also has a "hidden cost" in that it drives up interest paid on the budget deficit.

Berkley said the $300 tax credit jump starts the economy immediately, unlike tax cuts for corporations.

Sun reporter

Erin Neff contributed to this report.