Krugman has advice for Dean
Krugman makes a compelling case for only partial repeal of the tax cuts:
Dean has advocated complete repeal, mainly because of his proposals for health care and his assessment of the costs associated with Iraq (fixing Bush's mess is going to take a long time). However, this does put Dean at a rhetorical disadvantage, even with the other Democratic candidates.
Still, those who want to restore fiscal sanity probably need to frame their proposals in a way that neutralizes some of the administration's demagoguery. In particular, they probably shouldn't propose a rollback of all of the Bush tax cuts.
…These middle-class tax cuts were designed to create a "sweet spot" that would allow the administration to point to "typical" families that received big tax cuts...And such families played a big role in selling the overall package.
So if a Democratic candidate proposes a total rollback of the Bush tax cuts, he'll be offering an easy target: administration spokespeople will be able to provide reporters with carefully chosen examples of middle-income families who would lose $1,500 or $2,000 a year from tax-cut repeal. By leaving the child tax credits and the cutout in place while proposing to repeal the rest, contenders will recapture most of the revenue lost because of the tax cuts, while making the job of the administration propagandists that much harder.
…Will someone be able to find the political sweet spot, the combination of fiscal responsibility and electoral smarts that brings the looting to an end? The future of the nation depends on the answer.
Dean has advocated complete repeal, mainly because of his proposals for health care and his assessment of the costs associated with Iraq (fixing Bush's mess is going to take a long time). However, this does put Dean at a rhetorical disadvantage, even with the other Democratic candidates.
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