Welcome to the top tax and accounting headlines from Reuters and other sources.

 * White House, nonprofit groups battle over charitable deductions. Jerry Markon and Peter Wallsten – The Washington Post. The White House and the nation’s most prominent charities are embroiled in a tense behind-the-scenes debate over President Obama’s push to scale back the nearly century-old tax deduction on donations that the charities say is crucial for their financial health. Link  

* Wealthy Americans gird for their own cliff. Jennifer Smith – The Wall Street Journal. Whatever happens with the “fiscal cliff,” wealthy Americans could be paying their last respects to generous tax breaks that let them pass millions of dollars to heirs and other recipients tax-free. Link  

Welcome to the top tax and accounting headlines from Reuters and other sources.

 * Tax offer for firms pits big vs. small. John McKinnon – The Wall Street Journal. The Obama administration’s offer to revamp the corporate tax code as part of the “fiscal cliff” budget talks raises the prospect that tax rates for large and small companies could diverge significantly. Link  

* Boehner tries to contain defections on fiscal unity. Jonathan Weisman – The New York Times. Speaker John A. Boehner moved Wednesday to maintain Republican unity on deficit reduction talks as lawmakers on the far right openly chafed at his leadership and some pragmatists pressed for quick accommodation on tax rate increases on the rich. Link

Welcome to the top tax and accounting headlines from Reuters and other sources.

* Corporate taxes on table in cliff talks. Damian Paletta and Janet Hook – The Wall Street Journal. The White House has told Republicans it would include an overhaul of the corporate-tax code as part of any deal to reduce the deficit, people familiar with the talks said, a move to court business groups as budget negotiations intensify. The White House’s corporate-tax suggestion wasn’t specific, according to officials. Link

* As John Boehner navigates fiscal cliff, House Republican freshmen largely quiet. Rosalind Helderman – The Washington Post. After spending the better part of the past two years loudly defying their leaders, many House Republican freshmen are now trying a new approach: quiet support. They have responded with near-silence as a group largely controlled by House Speaker John Boehner. Link  

Welcome to the top tax and accounting headlines from Reuters and other sources.

 * Boehner’s test: Keep GOP ranks behind him. Patrick O’Connor – The Wall Street Journal. House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner’s strategy, and his future as speaker, will get tested between now and year-end as Washington wrestles with negotiations designed to avert tax increases and spending cuts due to begin in early January. Link 

 * Senate Democrats seek delay in medical device tax. Joseph Walker – The Wall Street Journal. A group of 17 Democratic U.S. senators and senators-elect have signed a letter urging for a delay in implementing a tax on the medical-device industry that is scheduled to go into effect Jan. 1, said two people familiar with the matter. Link 

U.S. House Speaker John Boehner speaks to the media outside his office on Capitol Hill in Washington, December 7, 2012. REUTERS/Yuri GripasWelcome to the top tax and accounting headlines from Reuters and other sources.

* Tax arithmetic shows top rate is just a starter. Jackie Calmes – The New York Times. Despite hints in recent days that President Obama and House Speaker John A. Boehner might compromise on the tax rate to be paid by top earners, a host of other knotty tax questions could still derail a deal to avert a fiscal crisis in January. Link

Welcome to the top tax and accounting headlines from Reuters and other sources.

* Fiscal talks spur charitable giving. Laura Saunders and Hanna Karp – The Wall Street Journal. Tax uncertainty in Washington is setting off a mad scramble among wealthy taxpayers and charities to maximize donations before the end of the year. Their worry: The tax deduction for charitable giving, a fixture of the tax code for nearly a century, is coming under pressure as part of a broader fiscal agreement now being hammered out on Capitol Hill. Link

* In Obama’s plan to tax rich, $250,000 figure may mislead. Catherine Rampell – The New York Times. A close look at the president’s plan shows that a large majority of families making up to $300,000 — as well as hundreds of thousands of families with even larger incomes — would not pay taxes at a higher marginal rate. Because the complexity of the tax code makes it difficult to draw clean lines, they are the beneficiaries of choices the administration has made to ensure that families earning less than $250,000 do not pay higher rates. Link