Obama's op-ed today in today's Iowa Quad City Times: Fixed-Income Seniors Can Expect a Tax Break

[flpoljunkie]

Fixed-income seniors can expect a tax cut
By Barack Obama

In this country, we have always believed that a lifetime of hard work and honest living should be rewarded with a secure and dignified retirement. But today, too many seniors are being denied that security because they cannot afford the rising costs of everything from their gas to their medicine. The last thing they need is a tax code that works against them as well. That is why earlier this week, I proposed tax relief for seniors.

My plan will eliminate income taxes for about 7 million seniors making less than $50,000 a year. Twenty-two million more won’t even have to file a return, which also means they won’t have to hire an expensive accountant.

This tax cut is needed especially because since 1993 seniors have been bearing an unfair tax burden. That year, a national tax hike raised the amount that millions of seniors had to pay on their Social Security benefits, which meant that their actual benefits were reduced. My tax cut will give these seniors a break without threatening Social Security.

But the truth is, if we’re serious about making retirement security a reality, mitigating the effects of this tax hike is not enough. We have to ensure that Social Security is a safety net that today’s seniors and future generations of Americans can count on.

<>We need a President who can challenge conventional thinking in Washington, fight for the people’s interests, and bring Americans together to meet the challenges of our time. That is exactly the sort of leadership I intend to offer.

http://www.qctimes.com/articles/2007/09/21/opinion/columnists/doc46f35dac127eb409456532.prt