This week the president urges the House to pass the tax cut bill for all Americans that was passed in the Senate. House Speaker John Boehner refuses to allow the measure to be brought to a vote, because he wants an even larger tax cut for those who make over $250,000 per year.

Let’s be clear on this: because of the way marginal taxes work, the tax bill passed by the Senate is a tax cut for every single working American. What the Republicans want, and what they are willing to kill this bill for, is an additional tax cut that applies only to the wealthy.

He also knows that if he brings the bill to a vote, it will probably pass despite the Republican majority, and he doesn’t want the president to have any victories this year, regardless of whether it would be good or bad for the country as a whole. Patriotism!

Previous weekly address here.