Congress favors raising taxes for millions of people

Democrats forge ahead with plan to allow tax cuts to expire

WASHINGTON (AP) - Both houses of Congress endorsed the idea of tax increases for millions of Americans yesterday as Democrats pressed ahead with budget plans that would allow some or all of President Bush’s reductions to expire after he leaves office.

All three major presidential candidates interrupted their campaigns to vote on the budget planning, which is nonbinding but highlights the difficult choices facing the next president and Congress. Binding votes on the expiring Bush tax cuts will be left to his successor and the Congress that is elected in November.

The candidates also wanted a chance to vote for a one-year ban on pork-barrel projects, though that late-night Senate effort seemed doomed to defeat. The practice of inserting “earmarked” spending into legislation is seen as a birthright by legislators in both parties - and a right under the power of the purse awarded to Congress by the Founding Fathers.