John McCain's tax agenda
Another day, another conference call, this time with RNC deputy chairman Frank Donatelli.
Bottom line, Donatelli described McCain’s tax agenda thus: make the Bush tax cuts permanent, and cut the corporate rate from 35% to 25%, because that’s how economic growth and job creation happens.
That right there is an agenda any good conservative can get behind.
Now, if you’re keeping score, you know that McCain voted against the Bush tax cuts back when they happened in Bush’s first term. I asked Donatelli to explain the apparent dichotomy, and he did.
Donatelli said, first of all, McCain hasn’t "changed his mind" on tax cuts – he’s all for them. The problem with the Bush tax cuts: they weren’t accompanied by spending restraint.
That’s a statement that cuts a couple of ways: on the down side, we hate hearing how tax cuts have to be “paid for.” Those weren’t Donatelli’s exact words, but that’s how I interpreted them.
On the up side, well, yeah, we all wish there’d been some spending restraint in the Bush administration.
So McCain voted no at the time, but would vote to extend the cuts because, Donatelli explained, to not do so would be supporting tax increases, and McCain has never voted for a tax increase.
More: Sean was on the call, too, and asked about the housing crisis. Honestly, my eyes glazed over a little during Donatelli’s answer, but it sounded like all he was saying was: the lenders shoulda known better.
Links: Blake Dvorak (from RealClearPolitics.com) asked about energy policy and, specifically, drilling for more oil.
Amanda Carpenter posted on that question, too.
Mark Finkelstein from Newsbusters.org asked Donatelli about some recent and blatant pro-Obama bias in the MSM
Alex Roarty of Politicker.com had questions about a McCain administration being a third round of Bush.
John Ruberry of Marathon Pundit had also asked a tax question.
One more thing: Lawrence Kudlow reports on McCain’s speech at the National Small Business Summit:
Bottom line, Donatelli described McCain’s tax agenda thus: make the Bush tax cuts permanent, and cut the corporate rate from 35% to 25%, because that’s how economic growth and job creation happens.
That right there is an agenda any good conservative can get behind.
Now, if you’re keeping score, you know that McCain voted against the Bush tax cuts back when they happened in Bush’s first term. I asked Donatelli to explain the apparent dichotomy, and he did.
Donatelli said, first of all, McCain hasn’t "changed his mind" on tax cuts – he’s all for them. The problem with the Bush tax cuts: they weren’t accompanied by spending restraint.
That’s a statement that cuts a couple of ways: on the down side, we hate hearing how tax cuts have to be “paid for.” Those weren’t Donatelli’s exact words, but that’s how I interpreted them.
On the up side, well, yeah, we all wish there’d been some spending restraint in the Bush administration.
So McCain voted no at the time, but would vote to extend the cuts because, Donatelli explained, to not do so would be supporting tax increases, and McCain has never voted for a tax increase.
More: Sean was on the call, too, and asked about the housing crisis. Honestly, my eyes glazed over a little during Donatelli’s answer, but it sounded like all he was saying was: the lenders shoulda known better.
Links: Blake Dvorak (from RealClearPolitics.com) asked about energy policy and, specifically, drilling for more oil.
Amanda Carpenter posted on that question, too.
Mark Finkelstein from Newsbusters.org asked Donatelli about some recent and blatant pro-Obama bias in the MSM
Alex Roarty of Politicker.com had questions about a McCain administration being a third round of Bush.
John Ruberry of Marathon Pundit had also asked a tax question.
One more thing: Lawrence Kudlow reports on McCain’s speech at the National Small Business Summit:
For investors, small-business owner-operators, and the vast majority of middle-class Americans who go to work every day and are concerned about Sen. McCain’s tax vision, this speech is good news. Big Mac is the taxpayer-friendly candidate.
posted by Lance Burri @ 6:44 PM
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