Sen. Brown Stakes Position On Looming Tax Issue

By Curt Nickisch (@CurtNickisch)
Nov 16, 2010, 4:14 AM
12 Comments

Republican Sen. Scott Brown addressed the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce in Boston on Monday. (AP)

BOSTON — When Scott Brown last spoke to the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce a year ago, he was an overlooked and underestimated candidate for U.S. Senate. Not anymore.

“It’s good to be back,” Brown — now a senator — said to the business group Monday. “I’m seeing a lot of familiar faces; folks that helped me, folks that didn’t.” That drew laughter.

Brown was comfortable and passionate about lowering corporate taxes. He slapped the podium as he spoke about limiting government regulation.

The case of the expiring tax cuts presents Brown with another potentially tricky vote. He’s toeing the Republican line but representing a blue state.

“I can’t go back to Washington later today and start working again on fluff when we should be focusing on the very important things that can get our country and get our state moving again!”

But it wasn’t until after the speech, only when asked, that Brown carefully stated his position on the Bush-era tax cuts for individuals. Those are due to expire at the end of next month.

“I’m not going to get into hypotheticals,” he said, “but the so-called Bush tax cuts, if they expire, it’s an automatic tax increase for everybody. And in the middle of a two-year recession, it’d be a job killer.”

Democrats agree to a point. They want to extend the tax cuts for the lower- and middle-class, but not for households making more than $250,000 a year. Massachusetts’ senior U.S. senator, Democrat John Kerry, says that would cost the government too much revenue.

After Brown’s speech, one of his former colleagues in the State House, Democratic Rep. Tom Conroy, compared Brown’s support of President Bush’s tax cuts to President Reagan’s economic strategy.

“Trickled-down economics hasn’t been proven,” Conroy said. “It’s not there, it’s not worked in the past 30 years. And Scott just keeps proposing it.”

Others in the audience disagreed. Chamber member Laura Pellegrini says it will hurt the economy to raise taxes on the wealthy.

“I’m not that immersed in all the details of the tax cuts, but I think it all goes hand in hand,” she said.

The case of the expiring tax cuts presents Brown with another potentially tricky vote. He’s toeing the Republican line but representing a blue state. Democratic political strategist Susan Tracy says how Brown votes on taxes is not red or blue — or even black or white. Just look at our last election, she says. Massachusetts voted to keep the state sales tax where it is, but to repeal it on alcohol.

“The fact that you had two tax questions and they broke in different directions does tell you that people were thoughtful about their votes,” Tracy said.

She says Brown will need to be thoughtful about his vote. At least, that’s her advice to him.

“I think you’re going to have to explain to voters what the role of holding onto those cuts will be on the deficit and how you reconcile that,” she said. “If you can’t make that case to voters, that’s not initially a good place to be.”

But Brown is in a good place to be, according to Tufts political science Prof. Jeff Berry. He says the last thing Democrats want is for the tax cuts to expire and everyone’s taxes to go up. Democrats may need to compromise. And Berry says Brown can once again play the part of the dealmaker.

“If the Congress passes something that President Obama supports, that makes it easier for Scott Brown here in Democratic Massachusetts,” Berry said.

Brown’s done this before. He held out for concessions then signed on to the financial overhaul bill. Another time, he stuck with his base and voted against Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan. She won anyway, so his vote didn’t matter.

The Bush tax cuts once again present a vote that could give his opponents ammunition — or else give him another chance to stake his claim as a “Scott Brown Republican.”

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An American worker

Yes, the only people trickle down economics helped is the fat cats on Wall Street. How can anyone forget the shame-
less poverty exposed by such an economic theory in New Orleans and Hurricane Katrina. It was just shocking.

Heck, I was reading how this stupid economic theory was exported too globally in my monthly popular journals and how many of those poor developing countries got eventual-ly got from American corporations and wealth was more dumps and poor instructure and ill health….

The shame of it all today and Republicans are going down
the wrong road if they think people are going to swallow
their garbage they are peddling today to people all over.

An American worker…
LetTheTaxCutsExpire

In 2004 the median household income in the United States was $44,389.

People making over $250,000 are making over five times the median US household! Letting the Bush tax cuts expire on them is not going to hurt them one bit unless they’re being just as irresponsible with their money as Wall Street has been.
John

I don’t accept the often stated view that “we cannot afford to give the “rich” a tax cut”. In fact (1) it is not a tax cut it is just the absence of a tax increase and (2) It won’t actually cost a penny if it gets the economy moving again and gets people back to work. More jobs and more business success equals more government revenue. Why don’t people wake up? This has been shown over and over again from John Kennedy to Ronald Reagan.
John

There is a third point. People who earn about $250K are NOT RICH. They are successful and often have worked hard to earn their money. My wife an I both have PhDs and spent many years in school and in hard work to raise our income to its present level. The federal government does not deserve more than a third of our income plus local and state government which takes another 10-15%.
Frank

I guess by some metrics I am considered “rich”. I have worked hard for over 30 years, started working in a machine shop. I have an advanced degree, and work at a great company that exports great US based technology.
I do not matter paying my fair share – but when my personal budget is squeezed, then I have to adjust my spending. The government has to be faced with the same realities. Get less, spend less.
Hardy Kornfeld

I make > $250K and could be subject to higher taxes on income above that level, but I find the present wealth disparity in the U.S. a much more disturbing prospect than paying a little more. I also find troubling that corporate taxes as a percent of GDP have steadily declined since 1950 with no evidence of economic benefit to the population as a whole. Indeed, it seems that the most consistent economic boost has been increased productivity of American workers without a corresponding increase in real wages.
Alan Papert

The economy had no difficulty exp0anding in the 1950s and 1960s with tax brackets ranging from 20% to 90%. My first boss in 1952 used to say “Given the tax rate all I have to do is work harder to make more money.” The trouble today is that people want to make money but do not want to work for it.
Dave

I am a single male who considers himself relatively well off (but less than 6 figures) and I will gladly pay more taxes if they are used efficiently and it is necessary for the functioning of society. We should always eliminate waste but there simply is not enough waste to make up the budget deficit.

Ronald Reagan’s budget director David Stockman (?) was on “60 Minutes” a few weeks ago. He referred to the current crop of Republicans as demagogues and said we could barely find $50 billion worth of savings but we have to find over a trillion to deal with this deficit!! Everyone has been given the impression, largely, it seems, from right wing radio hosts, that government is totally inefficient and should not be given another dime. I think we should examine the motives of these people who are clearly much more concerned about amassing their own wealth rather than determining what is their fair share of taxes.

And we haven’t even begun to talk about the massive investments in our infrastructure that are now necessary, thanks to years of neglect.
Mike Smith

Brown’s shtik is “it’s an automatic tax increase for everybody. And in the middle of a two-year recession, it’d be a job killer.”

No matter what you ask him that is his reply. He’ll never get reelected if he doesn’t do something original fast.
Frank

Let’s face it; there are consequences for our actions. We should expect lots more bad ideas and results from Scott the porn boy, and his buddies Boehner and McConnell. Brown is perhaps the biggest mistake in our recent leadership role in the US government. He clearly is a light weight and has become our Sarah Palin. Our problems are complex, and we have put a seriously challenged person in our corner to support our diverse economy. The idea that letting business regulate itself is exactly what we got with 8 years of Bush, and what do we do, elect perhaps the next Bush/Palin type…they are kind of folksy, but have no clue as to what leadership and the complex issues we have are to be solved. I hope he resigns or gets ousted at the next opportunity.
jo

Yea, Frank because Pelosi and Reid have shown they have a “clue as to what leadership and the complex issues we have are to be solved”…lol
You sound like a left wing fanatic. Raising taxes and bigger government is the panacea to all.
Ben G

Isn’t this the same senator who, just a few days ago on the subject of unemployment benefits, was just saying that he’d rather pay for things from the bank account rather than credit card? Sounds like he’s flip-flopping and whipping out the credit card to “pay” for extending these tax cuts.

By the way, for all you “not rich” people making more than $250K a year, income taxes are MARGINAL, meaning that if tax cuts for incomes below $250K are kept, you’d get a tax cut for all your income under $250K, and the rest of your income would be taxed at the higher rate. Get it?