Wall Street Journal- Some prominent Democrats are beginning to rethink proposed tax increases on hedge-fund and private-equity managers’ earnings, after an aggressive pushback by industry lobbyists and arguments that the impact could extend far beyond Wall Street.
The shift may make it tougher for any legislation to win passage, or strengthen a push to find a compromise. Democrats hold only a slim majority on Capitol Hill and defections of just a handful could delay or defeat such a measure if Republicans unite to oppose it. Until now, opposition was largely limited to Republicans.
“When you first hear about it, it seems like, ‘Yes, this looks like an appealing way to generate a lot of revenue,’ but when you study it more it seems like there are some serious unintended consequences,” said Rep. Brian Baird of Washington, a member of a coalition of centrist Democrats who often play a deciding role on business and tax bills.
