President-elect Barack Obama eyes a $300 billion tax cut

President-elect Barack Obama and congressional Democrats are working on a plan that would deliver $300 billion worth of tax cuts to individuals and businesses, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The proposed tax cuts, which would make up about 40 percent of the economic stimulus package, may make it easier to attract Republican support for an economic-stimulus package, as many Republicans have said that economic initiatives should rely more heavily on tax cuts rather than spending, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The size of the proposed tax cuts could reach $775 billion over two years, which is a larger amount than many Democrats and Republicans in Congress had anticipated, according to the Wall Street Journal.

If enacted, the Obama tax-cut proposals could total more in two years than either of President Bush's tax cuts did in their first two years, according to the Associated Press.

Bush's 10-year, $1.35 trillion tax cut of 2001 - considered the largest tax cut - was made up of $174 billion of cuts during its first two full years, according to Congress's Joint Committee on Taxation.

Obama had hoped to have Congress enact the recovery plan in time for him to sign his when he takes office in January, but Robert Gibbs, spokesman for Obama, said that was "very, very unlikely."

"We don't anticipate that Congress will have passed, both houses, an economic recovery agreement by the time the inauguration takes place," Gibbs told the Associated Press.

Obama has insisted bold and quick action is crucial to help America bounce back from this recession.

"Economists from across the political spectrum agree that if we don't act swiftly and boldly, we could see a much deeper economic downturn that could lead to double-digit unemployment and the American dream slipping further and further out of reach," he said in his Saturday radio and YouTube address.

Congressional aides briefed on the plan say it likely will include tax cuts of $500 to $1,000 for middle-class individuals and couples, as well as some $200 billion to help revenue-starved states pay for health care programs for the poor and other operating costs. A large portion of the money would go for infrastructure projects, such as road and bridge repairs as well as energy efficiency projects and health care information technology systems.