The Truth Behind Obama and Giving Tax Cuts to 95% of Americans

Every time Obama has declared that he will cut taxes for 95% of Americans, it has made me wonder. This seems so unlike Obama. His voting record certainly suggests he is not a fan of cutting taxes. So what's the real story? The Wall Street Journal digs a little deeper.

One of Barack Obama's most potent campaign claims is that he'll cut taxes for no less than 95% of "working families." He's even promising to cut taxes enough that the government's tax share of GDP will be no more than 18.2% -- which is lower than it is today.

It's a clever pitch, because it lets him pose as a middle-class tax cutter while disguising that he's also proposing one of the largest tax increases ever on the other 5%. But how does he conjure this miracle, especially since more than a third of all Americans already pay no income taxes at all? There are several sleights of hand, but the most creative is to redefine the meaning of "tax cut."

The article then goes on to list a number of "tax credits" that Obama plans to give to people. So what's the catch?

Here's the political catch. All but the clean car credit would be "refundable," which is Washington-speak for the fact that you can receive these checks even if you have no income-tax liability. In other words, they are an income transfer -- a federal check -- from taxpayers to nontaxpayers. Once upon a time we called this "welfare," or in George McGovern's 1972 campaign a "Demogrant." Mr. Obama's genius is to call it a tax cut.

The main point here is that Obama is politician--and a good one. He says one thing but plans something entirely different. That just leave the question that concludes the WSJ article:

One mystery -- among many -- of the McCain campaign is why it has allowed Mr. Obama's 95% illusion to go unanswered.

I, for one, would like him to at least raise the point in the remaining weeks of the campaign.