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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
“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.<\/p>\n