President Obama tax increases on the wealthy

President Obama is to use Tuesday's State of the Union speech to call for tax increases on the wealthy to help the middle class, officials say.

The proposals would raise $320 billion (£211 billion) over a decade, to fund benefits such as tax credits.

The speech is the centrepiece of the US political diary and may shape both Mr Obama's legacy and the 2016 election.

But the president faces resistance to his proposals, with Republicans controlling both Houses of Congress.

With the US economy growing, President Obama will stress that it is time for ordinary US families to feel the benefits.

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