In the video below, Barack Obama tells an audience in Norfolk, Va., that there are analysts at The Heritage Foundation “who are acknowledging that my tax plan provides more relief to the average American than John McCain’s does.”
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahHpaFKoQDo[/youtube]
Here is the actual quote from the New York Sun:
Mr. Hederman said the middle class would likely pay less under Mr. Obama’s plan than Mr. McCain’s but that the Democrat was excessively reliant on complicated tax breaks that would make the tax code more confusing. “Instead of a grab bag of tax credits, lower the marginal rates,” Mr. Hederman said.
This is hardly an endorsement of Obama’s tax scheme, which Hederman said would rival European levels of taxation. While Obama offers many different tax credits to the middle class, it is unlikely that many people in the middle class will benefit from them. Many in the middle class will lose out because Obama accomplishes his cuts by making the tax code far more complex for middle class America. Obama sacrifices good tax policy and economic growth in favor of redistribution through the tax code.
Furthermore, Obama’s plan makes it more difficult for working class Americans to move up the economic ladder by sharply raising their effective tax rates due to the phase-outs of many of his proposals. It would be preferable if Obama lowered marginal rates instead of relying on gimmicks and tax credits to lower taxes.
Finally, American workers need a strong economy that can create good jobs and increase take-home pay. Obama’s piecemeal tax cuts are accompanied by other tax hikes, and other policies (like a massive new carbon tax and billions in wasteful spending), that will weaken the economy in the near term and the long run. Even a modest tax cut is always welcome, but a strong economy will make the bigger difference in the lives of American families.
