WHY SHOULD WE PUNISH JOB CREATION IN THE FIRST PLACE?:

A White House proposal to pair a corporate tax overhaul with new domestic spending elevated the contentious issue of tax policy to the fore in budget negotiations and appeared to give a shot of momentum to changes long supported by some of the largest U.S. companies.

The proposal, laid out Tuesday in a speech by President Barack Obama, raised the prospect that corporate taxation would now be high on the list of items under discussion as the White House and congressional Republicans negotiate federal spending levels for next year and the terms for raising the debt ceiling, both of which must be resolved within months.

Mr. Obama, in his speech, offered to work with Congress to overhaul business taxes in exchange for a guarantee that a resulting, one-time revenue gain be used to underwrite new spending on roads and infrastructure and other programs the president said would boost the economy.

The president said he supports the move "as long as we use the money from transitioning to a simpler tax system for a significant investment in creating middle-class jobs," Mr. Obama said in Chattanooga, Tenn. "That's the deal."

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