As momentum builds toward tax reform, lobbyists prepare for a fight

[xchrom]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/as-momentum-builds-toward-tax-reform-lobbyists-prepare-for-a-fight/2013/03/09/e46c0b3a-6ad9-11e2-af53-7b2b2a7510a8_story.html?hpid=z1

An army of lobbyists has been mobilizing in the halls of Congress over recent months in anticipation of what could be a monumental struggle later this year over reforming the tax code.

While the standoff over sequester spending cuts and other budget battles have been grabbing headlines, momentum has quietly been building toward a once-in-a-generation push to overhaul federal taxes, an effort that would likely affect nearly every family and business.

Tax reform edged closer to center stage in recent days after President Obama opened conversations with Republicans over a deal to tackle the federal deficit. A broad rewrite of the tax code could figure in such an agreement, along with cuts in such entitlement programs as Medicare and other changes in federal spending.

The prospect of a tax overhaul has already kicked the capital’s influence industry into high gear. From corporate chiefs and hedge fund lobbyists to Montana ranchers and Broadway producers, the players have already begun their campaigns, pressing for everything from lowering the corporate tax rate to preserving cherished deductions and, in some instances, inserting new tax loopholes into law.

[daybranch]

1. cutting medicare

Any real cutting of the services medicare now provides is a betrayal of progressive supporters.