Obama was for the Republican fiscal cliff revenue generation method, before he was against it.
[Update] Found the clip without having to watch the entire speech, watch below: (H/T The Corner)
Barack Obama continues to tell the American public that taxes must be raised to generate the the revenue needed and that eliminating tax loopholes and some deductions just can't raise the $800 billion that Republicans say can be raised without raising taxes.
Besides the fact that the White House website itself states that $800 billion in new revenue can be generated by eliminating loopholes and some deductions for people making over $250,000, we now see that in July 2011, Barack Obama himself, in a press conference, said that $1.2 trillion could be raised by using the methods proposed today by Republicans.
... What we said was give us $1.2 trillion in additional revenues, which could be accomplished without hiking taxes — tax rates, but could simply be accomplished by eliminating loopholes, eliminating some deductions and engaging in a tax reform process that could have lowered rates generally while broadening the base."
The transcript of that July 2011 Obama press conference can be found on the White House website. (Third paragraph)
The video of that press conference from July 22, 2011 can be found at YouTube and his comments about generating $1.2 trillion without raising taxes, by using the very means Republicans proposed yesterday, which Obama rejected, ar eat the 1:50 minute mark.
Entertainingly enough, liberals were behind the 2012 Republican fiscal cliff revenue generation plan..... back in 2011, as well!
[Update- 12/5/12] GOP: Obama once backed our loophole plan
In current negotiations to avoid the "fiscal cliff," Obama backs higher tax rates for the wealthy, specifically by eliminating the George W. Bush-era tax cuts for Americans who make more than $250,000 annually.The GOP should spend some money making sure the clip of Obama saying revenues can be raised without raising taxes, is seen in every single home of America. Obama is out campaigning the issue, Republicans should take a page from his playbook and do the same.. that one clip could turn the tide of these negotiations if handled right.
House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, has pitched a plan that raises revenues by closing loopholes and eliminating or reducing certain tax deductions. "There is a middle ground solution that can cut spending and bring in revenue without hurting American small businesses," Boehner said.
Obama and aides say the GOP plan won't raise nearly the $800 billion over a decade that it claims, at least not without eliminating popular deductions such as the ones on charitable contributions and home mortgage payments. "When you look at the math, it doesn't work," Obama told Bloomberg Television on Tuesday.
Said a statement from Boehner's office: "It's a solution President Obama himself once supported. If the math worked in 2011, why doesn't it work today?"
If the mainstream media won't highlight it, there are ways around that..... USE THEM.