Tax Wars

In case you aren't already aware, we're beginning to enter a "fallow" period in political coverage. The presidential nominees of both parties are set, and the national conventions are still a couple of months away. Congress will soon be in recess, so there won't even be much inside the Beltway chatter to report on. Why else would taxes, something most Americans hate but hate to talk about, come center stage?

Barack Obama and John McCain have spent the better part of this week beating each other up over their tax proposals. This is better than questioning each others' patriotism, or who wears a flag lapel pin, but it still makes peoples' heads hurt. McCain is trying hard to paint Obama as just another "tax and spend liberal". Problem is, McCain's tax proposal sounds an awful lot like the one person he's trying to run away from, President Bush.

A non partisan group has studied both plans, and says (no surprise here) that neither is perfect. However, there is some food for thought. Obama's plan would actually reduce taxes on the middle class, that is, families earning from $37,000 to $66,000 dollars. The reduction would be just over $1000. John McCain's plan would also lower taxes for the same group, but only by $319 dollars. In fact, the biggest beneficiaries of McCain's proposal would be those making $2.8 million dollars a year and up.

McCain's people argue that the analysis by the Tax Policy Center is flawed, but as mentioned, the group is non partisan. McCain argues Obama wants the greatest tax increase since World War II. The Tax Policy Center says that's an exaggeration. Republicans have used taxes like a bludgeon against a succession of Democrats, state and national.

McCain may have to find something else.