BY WESLEY P. HESTER

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Timothy M. Kaine is distancing himself from President Barack Obama’s tax proposal — by $250,000.

Obama today called for a one-year extension of the Bush-era tax cuts, but only for those earning less than $250,000 meaning taxes on high earners would go up.   

Kaine, a former governor who recently served as Democratic National Committee chairman, issued a statement Monday afternoon agreeing with the premise of the president’s proposal, but not the threshold.

Instead, Kaine proposed allowing the taxes to rise only on those earning $500,000 or more, and urged lawmakers to find compromise on the contentious issue.

“I disagree with those Republicans who argue that the Bush tax cuts should be made permanent in their entirety,” Kaine said in a statement. “I also disagree with the president on the level at which we should allow them to expire.  If everyone sets partisanship aside, we can find the right balance between helping families and businesses and making progress toward reducing the deficit.”

Kaine’s opponent, former Gov. George Allen, and other Republicans have gone to great lengths to tie Kaine to Obama’s policies.

All of the Bush-era tax cuts, part of the so-called “fiscal cliff” due to be reached at the end of the year, will expire Jan. 1 unless congress can agree to a compromise.

Economists warn that no resolution on the tax cuts and other issues could throw the economy back into a tailspin.