Obama signs payroll tax agreement into law February 23, 2012 -- Updated 0128 GMT (0928 HKT) The agreement also extended unemployment benefits It prevents a cut in payments for Medicare doctors Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama on Wednesday signed into law the agreement passed by Congress last week to extend the payroll tax cut and unemployment benefits while preventing a cut in payments to Medicare doctors. The signing announced in a White House statement that resolves those issues for the rest of 2012, beyond the November election in which Obama will seek a second term. On Tuesday, Obama congratulated Congress for overcoming sharp partisan divisions that have stymied progress in the past year and challenged legislators to enact the rest of his administration's economic priorities. "For a typical middle-class family, (the payroll tax cut) is a big deal," Obama said. Earlier Wednesday, the administration unveiled Obama's plan to overhaul the corporate tax code by reducing the corporate tax rate to 28% from 35% and eliminating dozens of business tax breaks. In addition, Obama has outlined a number of other proposals also believed to have little or no chance of winning approval among Republicans on Capitol Hill, most notably the so-called "Buffett Rule" designed to ensure people with annual incomes of more than $1 million pay at least a 30% tax rate. Political analysts, however, note that even if Obama's proposals fail to pass Congress, the president can draw a clear distinction between himself and his Republican opponent in November. GOP leaders this month acknowledged they angered voters by initially raising objections to the unpaid tax-cut extension. CNN's Alan Silverleib, Adam Aigner-Treworgy and Jessica Yellin contributed to this report.