House OKs wealth tax to pay for veteran benefits

WASHINGTON — Congressional Democrats began to put into practice their philosophy of asking the wealthy to shoulder more of the cost of government programs on Thursday as the House approved a new veterans-education benefit that would be paid for by a tax on affluent Americans.

Some Republicans joined Democrats in approving the aid, for veterans who enlisted after the Sept. 11 attacks, with a cost estimated at $52 billion over 10 years.

A vote to provide an additional $163 billion for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan went down in defeat, at least temporarily, because of objections from members of both parties.

In pushing the tax plan, Democrats are banking on the idea that most Americans will have no quarrel with requiring those on the highest economic rung to pay for veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan to receive the equivalent of a free four-year college education at a public university.

Individuals earning $500,000 or more would pay a surtax of 0.47 percent on income of more than $500,000 and the tax would apply to couples on incomes of more than $1 million.

Democratic officials said one analysis estimated 440,000 people would fall under the new tax and would pay an average of nearly $9,000 a year.

Leading Republicans said a tax is a tax. "I can't think of a worse time to raise taxes," said Rep. Paul Ryan, of Wisconsin, senior Republican on the Budget Committee.

Yet with their party's political prospects looking bleak, 32 Republicans joined 224 Democrats in the vote, which was 256-166, to approve the veterans benefits and the accompanying tax and extra unemployment benefits, up to 26 weeks in especially hard-hit areas. The package also included nearly $6 billion for Louisiana levees and $1.8 billion for international food and disaster aid. The Washington delegation voted along party lines, with Democrats voting yes and Republicans voting no.

The fate of the tax to pay for the veterans benefits is uncertain in the Senate, where Republicans were opposed to it and some Democrats were registering initial reservations.

The White House this week issued a veto threat against the overall measure, singling out the tax increase to pay for veterans benefits as a top reason.

In the roll call on the $163 billion for the war operations, 132 Republicans withheld their votes in protest of Democratic handling of the measure. At the same time, a large bloc of anti-war Democrats unwilling to provide new money for the conflict voted against the financing, causing it to fail on a 149-141 vote.

In the Washington delegation, Republican Dave Reichert joined Democrats Brian Baird, Norm Dicks, Rick Larsen and Adam Smith in voting for the funding; Democrats Jay Inslee and Jim McDermott voted against funding and Republicans Doc Hastings and Cathy McMorris Rodgers voted present.

Leaders of both parties said the result had not put the war spending in real jeopardy, since it was expected to be restored in the Senate, where a December 2009 deadline to withdraw combat troops from Iraq and other war restrictions passed by the House were expected to be killed. House members would then get another chance at the financing, and it was unlikely Republicans would stand in the way a second time.

Material from The Associated Press is included in this report.