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Reality Check: McCain Ad Calls Obama A 'Tax Hiker'

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Oct 8, 2008 9:16 pm US/Mountain

Reality Check: McCain Ad Calls Obama A 'Tax Hiker'

Written By Raj Chohan
Reporting
Raj Chohan
DENVER (CBS4) ― A new ad by the McCain-Palin campaign uses a familiar line of attack when it calls Barack Obama a tax hiker. The 30-second spot called "Tax Cutter" accuses the Illinois senator of casting dozens of votes in favor of raising taxes.

The ad states: Who is Barack Obama? The voiceover is followed by a recording of Barack Obama saying "I'm a tax cutter." Voiceover continues: really, Senator Obama voted 94 times for higher taxes, 94 times. He's not truthful on taxes. At least congressional liberals admit they want to raise your taxes. Add billions in new spending.

There is some spin here. According to an analysis done by Factcheck.org, almost a quarter of Obama's votes cited in the ad were votes against tax cuts, which is not the same as voting for a tax hike. Instead, Obama voted to maintain the status quo. As for the rest of the 94 votes, at least ten votes inflated the count because they were redundant votes on the same bills, and at least seven votes would have raised taxes on the wealthy, while cutting taxes on the middle class.

But it's not the whole story. If the general point is that Obama's votes have supported tax hikes compared to McCain's tax plan, well, that implication is true. Sen. Obama's past votes tend to support policies that would raise taxes either directly or indirectly. According to the non-partisan Tax Policy Center, Obama's future tax plan would raise taxes by about $600 billion, while McCain's tax plan would cut taxes by $600 billion over ten years. Nevertheless, the Tax Policy Center has concluded that both candidates have made promises they cannot pay for without significantly driving up the federal deficit.

Most of McCain's tax benefits go to big corporations and high-income earners. The centerpiece of McCain's plan would extend the Bush tax cuts of 2001, and 2003. If you're a supply sider, than you believe low corporate tax rates creates more jobs, and is ultimately better for the economy. On the other hand, if you believe economic success hasn't trickled down as promised, Obama's plan puts more federal tax dollars directly into low and middle class pockets while raising taxes considerably on wealthy Americans.

Bottom line. How you feel about these two approaches likely depends on how you think tax policy impacts the economy. Obama's policies will raise taxes in the aggregate compared to John McCain's plan. But if you reside in the middle class, Obama's plan will feel like a tax cut.

(© MMIX CBS Television Stations, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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