| The tax revolt era is over.
I noted it in the pages of In These Times last fall, writing: Even better news comes in the form of the apparent end of the tax revolt: voters rejected a number of so-called ?Taxpayers? Bill of Rights? (TABOR) spending cap measures and tax cuts in states across the country. New York City developer-turned-libertarian financier Howard Rich worked with a handful of friends to try and qualify as many as 35 anti-government ballot initiatives. Only one proved successful. Voters also outright rejected a number of tax cuts, including an estate tax repeal that was rejected by more than 60 percent of Washington state voters. New evidence reveals that this phenomenon is also occurring locally and in both among Montana Republicans and the GOP rank-and-file across the country.
Lee Newspapers new poll reveals that most Montanans think the $400 tax rebate was enough: 55 percent of voters said Gov. Brian Schweitzer's $400-per-household property tax refund was sufficient, while 33 percent said it should have been more. The other 12 percent were undecided. No indication of how many people thought it was more than necessary.
Interestingly, this figure is just a straight up -- did you want a bigger tax cut. Numbers always go more pro-government when given the choice between the tax cut and the improved government service. No exception here: The poll also found that 63 percent of Montana voters approved of the Legislature's spending nearly three-fourths of the projected $1 billion surplus on public schools, prisons, human services, state colleges and building. Twenty-six percent said more of the surplus should have been returned to taxpayers, while 11 percent were undecided. That's a more than 2-1 support for spending over tax cuts (Take that, Steve Daines!).
I'll offer more thoughts on the rest of the poll soon, but I want to highlight some more interesting data from another poll.
The Elephant in the Mirror is a poll that was just taken and has been released partially in some corners. The poll's purpose is to provide a portrait of the Republican Party as a whole -- all the Americans who are steady Republican voters.
Interestingly, the last time the poll was taken -- in 1997 -- nearly half of the Republican Party was driven primarily by economic concerns (like taxes), that number has now fallen to 15% or so.
This isn't to say that the GOP nationally isn't in favor of cutting taxes, but they are evenly divided over whether cutting taxes should be a higher priority than balancing the budget.
And get this -- even locally, the Republicans are becoming a bunch of tax-and-spenders (I love it). From Lee's poll: Democrats approved Schweitzer's rebate plan 72 percent to 12 percent. Republicans backed the rebate over returning more 46 percent to 44 percent. Among independents, 49 percent backed the $400 rebate, while 39 percent wanted a greater amount returned.
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Among Republicans, 45 percent said the money was properly spent, while 39 percent said more should have been returned to taxpayers. Somehow this story gets buried, but it's simply incredible. Steve Daines is basically getting recruited to run for Governor because of his "strength" on the anti-tax message -- but it's a message with which a plurality of his own party disagrees. |
