Romney's new ad against McCain

Brilliant ad by Romney! Hitting McCain on two of the issues that have been the most irksome -- taxes and amnesty -- and using actual voters in NH to criticize McCain. Who does McCain hit for lying about him then? The voters?

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Congress cleaning up its mess before Christmas recess

The AMT was finally patched just in time for Christmas break but there will still be a delay in getting your refund and it will be back next year because the patch is only good for this year:

'Twas the night before Christmas, or just about so,
All Congressmen and Senators straight home wished to go.

Then what to our wondering eyes did appear,
But a tax called "alternative," which the middle class fears.

[...]

So Reid and Pelosi, they finally surrendered,
And decided to patch it, lest voters be angered.

But the Grinch AMT, it just won't disappear.
Unless Congress kills it, it will resurface next year.

Ed Rollins: Huckabee's the next Reagan

What???? Sheesh! That's just ridiculous and an insult to Reagan:

Calling Huckabee "the next Reagan," Ed Rollins joined Huckabee's campaign team Friday as national campaign chairman and advisor.

"I've looked for a long time to find a candidate similar to [Reagan]. Mike Huckabee impresses on me as that kind of candidate," said Rollins, who ran Reagan's 1984 campaign, winning all but Mondale's home state of Minnesota, in Concord, N.H. "There's a lot of people running around talking about the Reagan days and who's the next Reagan. I was with the old Reagan, and I can promise you this man comes as close to anyone to filling those shoes and having that ability to communicate."

Speaking at a Holiday Inn, Rollins added Huckabee has more than just support from Christian conservatives in Iowa. "What Mike has had is an ability to connect with people," he said. "His message is an upbeat message, a message not of negativism, not a message of Wall Street, not a message of Washington. It's a message about, ‘I understand your problems. I've governed a small state with lots of problems.’ Certainly, that's what has great appeal here."

Would Reagan propose a national ban on smoking? Wouldn't anti-Communist Reagan know what was going on in Cuba and would he flip-flop on the issue just to get elected (and admit that he was doing it)? Would he say that CEOs' pay should be regulated (even as a last resort)? Would Reagan speak negatively about the current economy? Would Reagan have called Bush arrogant? Would Reagan agree with Huckabee's position on free trade?

Would Reagan ever say this:

"Profound thanks" for taxes? Yeah, I could see Reagan saying that.

The WSJ likes Thompson's new tax plan

It's about time someone simplifies the tax structure in this country:

Fred Thompson's Presidential campaign has been struggling, in part because of a sense that he lacks passion and an agenda. But late last week he unveiled a tax reform that is more ambitious than anything we've seen so far from the rest of the GOP field.

Mr. Thompson wants to abolish the death tax and the Alternative Minimum Tax and cut the corporate income tax rate to 27% from 35%. But his really big idea is a voluntary flat tax that would give every American the option of ditching the current code in favor of filing a simple tax return with two tax rates of 10% and 25%.

Mr. Thompson is getting aboard what has become a global bandwagon, with more than 20 nations having adopted some form of flat tax. Most--especially in Eastern Europe--have seen their economies grow and revenues increase as they've adopted low tax rates of between 13% and 25% with few exemptions.

The main political obstacle to such a reform in the U.S. has come from liberals, who favor punitive taxes for "class" reasons, and K Street corporate lobbyists who want to retain their tax-loophole empires. The housing and insurance industries, states and localities, charities, bond traders and tax preparers are all foes of low tax rates.

That's why the idea of a voluntary flat tax--introduced on these pages a dozen years ago--makes political sense. The Thompson plan would allow taxpayers to keep their mortgage and charitable deductions if they prefer, by adhering to the current tax code and rates. But it would also allow the option to abandon those credits and deductions except for a single allowance based on family size ($39,000 for a family of four). Most taxpayers would pay a 10% rate on income above that allowance, with a 25% rate kicking in at $100,000 for a couple. There would only be five lines on the tax form and most taxpayers could fill it out in minutes.

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The Mother of All Tax Hikes

Have you seen this video from the NRCC? Pretty silly.

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Rangel's Tax Increase "Dead on Arrival" in the Senate

According to Mitch McConnell (who should know :-)

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Rangel proposes a 4% surcharge on those making over 200,000!

If the Democrats win the trifecta next year, expect this tax to become law. I can't see how this is a winning strategy. Do you really think you aren't paying enough in taxes? I hope the Republicans will use the fact that they are being up front about their tax and spend policy.

Rangel said the broader measure, which he has called the ``mother of all reforms,'' would contain a 4 percent tax-rate surcharge on adjusted gross income over $200,000 for married couples. The surcharge would rise to 4.6 percent for those with income of more than $500,000. In addition, households with income of more than $200,000 would have to pay rates as high as 19.6 percent on capital gains and dividends, instead of the current rate of 15 percent.

That provision alone would raise $831.7 billion, more than enough to cover the cost of eliminating the minimum tax, Rangel said.

The overhaul, which he said wouldn't be voted on this year, also lowers the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 30.5 percent. To pay for that $363.84 billion tax cut, the proposal would repeal a special 32 percent tax rate for manufacturers and disallow the ``last-in, first-out'' accounting method that reduces taxes for businesses such as oil companies, wholesalers and automakers that hold inventory.

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Majority of Britains believe "green tax" is an excuse to raise taxes

Well, that's smart of them:

Nearly two-thirds of the public believe ministers are using environmental fears as an excuse to raise tax revenue, according to a poll.

And research suggests their cynicism is justified - with green taxes raking in £10 billion more for the Treasury than it would cost to offset the entire UK's carbon footprint.

The figures are contained in a dossier compiled by pressure group the TaxPayers' Alliance (TPA).

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The next question is: Why do they put up with it?

Thompson is not ruling out raising taxes????

He better promise or I might have to switch to someone else!

The former senator from Tennessee, who is expected to enter the race next month, wants to be the conservative alternative to Rudy Giuliani but refused repeated requests yesterday to rule out raising taxes.

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