Today, class, your assignment is to define the middle class in America.  Do not use the word surburbanite in your definition or you will receive less  classroom credit for your definition.

During the campaign speeches of President Barack Obama, it seems as though the thrust of the country's economic woes was entwined in the group of people he continually called the middle class.  These were the people who were going to turn this country around with increased spending and tax credits toward housing.  However, the Economic Stimulus bill seemed geared toward the unemployed, the elderly, and big businesses such as rail lines and construction of school projects.  What happened to the group of people who were supposed to pick themselves up, dust themselves off and remake America.  In that spirit of generality, the question is now posed to asked, who comprises the middle class in America?  What does middle class mean?  Is it the class between the poor and the rich?  If so that would include about 95% of the people that the Stimulus Plan is designed to affect.  Only 5% of Americans are rich and believe it or not there were provisions in the Economic Stimulus plan to protect them from being over taxed as well.

President Barack Obama  promised to cut taxes for the middle class during his campaign speeches.  He called the middle class any group of people who made or earned up to $200,000 a year.  But where is the starting point?  Is the range from $.0.00 to $200,000 a year.  In that scenario, that range of incomes would include the poor as well as the middle class.

Let's get a Republican into this forum of discussion and see what one of them thinks.  The Republicans knows about money, right?  Senator Mitch McConnell is a Republican from the state of good old Kentucky and  proposed lowering the tax rates of the middle class from 25% to 15%.  He not so eloquently stated as President Barack Obama, that  married couples filing jointly who earned between $65,100 to $131,450 consisted of the middle class.  Does that mean that people making over $131,450 to $200,000 is the new group of people that does not fit into a tax bracket except on the IRS tax tables?

Democrats, help this forum out here about who consists of the middle class in America.  A Democrat from New York, Senator Chuck Schumer stated after proposing a college tax credit for the middle class families that the middle class  earn up to $160,000 a year.  Again, Senator Schumer, what is the range in the class for a clearer definition and a clearer understanding of the middle class.  Also where do the people fit who makes more than $160,000 a year but less than President Barack Obama's threshold of $200,000?

If you were to apply at Harvard College to get a 10% tuition discount towards payments, you would have to adhere to the college's definition of the middle class.  Harvard College defines middle class as families earning from $60,000 to $180,000.  Good, finally someone gave a range in the income to determine the definition of the middle class.  But administrators at Harvard College, are you going to make this whole forum difficult by adding another group, the upper middle class and put them in the range of income of over $180,000 to President Barack Obama's measurement of middle class income of $200,000.  If so, the contribution of the upper middle class is appreciated but unfortunately, there is no tax cuts or tax credits from you that is clearly defined because of the varied definition of what consititues  the middle class in America.

The ramsificaions of what applies to the situation at the time and the qualifications of the offering agency will have to suffice as a definition of the middle class in America.

America, who do you think constitute the middle class in this country and which of the views mentioned do you tend to agree with?