WHY WOULD THE GOP LET HIM DO THAT? The Hill: Reid seeks parting gift for unions in sweeping tax deal.
Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid (Nev.), under pressure from labor allies, is pressing hard for a two-year moratorium of ObamaCare’s “Cadillac tax” in a major tax deal that negotiators hope to wrap up by Monday.
Reid has assured labor leaders that freezing the Cadillac tax on high-benefit insurance plans is a top personal priority, and he wants to get it done now, knowing he has only a year left as Senate Democratic leader.
Some Republicans, such as Sen. Dean Heller, also of Nevada, support getting rid of the Cadillac tax, but Reid is doing the heavy lifting to make sure it’s part of a year-end deal, according to sources familiar with the talks.
“Leader Reid feels very strongly, in my opinion from discussions with him, that this needs to be done and it needs to be done now. And I think he is confident that will occur,” said Harold Schaitberger, general president of the International Association of Firefighters, who met with Reid this past week.
Suspending the Cadillac tax in a package that would extend an array of expired tax provisions would be a major win for labor unions, who have at times voiced their displeasure with Democrats this year.
They all lined up to pass ObamaCare. Let ’em live with the consequences, unless they’re willing to line up to repeal the whole thing.