Daily Kos

Dean Lies Re VT Taxes?

by heynonnyno

Mon Dec 08, 2003 at 05:52:42 PM PDT

A puzzling article in yesterday's Boston Globe:

Dean's tax claims bring skepticism

In his just-published autobiography, ''Winning Back America,'' Howard Dean underscores what has become a longstanding central theme of his campaign. He writes: ''We cut taxes by 30 percent over the lifetime of my administration.'' In Iowa and New Hampshire, his campaign is airing a commercial promoting Dean as a ''fiscal conservative who cut state income taxes -- twice.''

On the campaign's website, Dean is even more specific, saying that his two cuts reduced the state's top income tax rate from 13.5 percent to 9.5 percent.

But an examination of Dean's record as Vermont's governor has found that the bigger tax cut was in fact signed into law by his Republican predecessor, Richard Snelling. In 1991, Snelling signed legislation authorizing higher tax rates that would ''sunset'' two years later. Dean, then lieutenant governor, took over after Snelling died, and the rates dropped automatically at the end of 1993.

I can't make head nor tails out of this article, but it seems highly unlikely that Dean would lie about something so easily checked.  Anybody?

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  •  Re: Dean Lies Re VT Taxes? (none / 0)

    Dean says "we".  He was a member of the Snelling administration.

    by Phil S on Mon Dec 08, 2003 at 05:58:25 PM PDT

  •  he didn't tell the whole truth (none / 0)

    On his watch taxes went down, but he didn't sign the bill that made it happen, and then he signed a bill into law lowering taxes again, this is just another problem that will just roll off the teflon Dean's back.  

    I prefer peace Wouldn't have to have one worldly possession But essentially I'm an animal So just what do I do with all the aggression?

    by jbou on Mon Dec 08, 2003 at 06:00:13 PM PDT

    •  ... They are trying to stop You (none / 0)

      This is a pretty flimsy attack on Dean.  It is just more evidence of the nit-picking stooped to by the 'Anti-Dean - All the Time' crowd.  

      Bush takes credit for things passed over his objection, like the Texas 'Patient's Bill of Rights', which is an order of magnitude more dis-honest than Dean taking credit for fighting to allow a tax cut to occur.  

      Dean is still a tax-cutter in any event so the truth is unchanged by yet another sleazy, 'Somebody, help me remove the lumber from my own eye' attack.

      They are not trying to stop Dean...
      They are trying to stop progress...

      The Iraq CHICKEN-hawk War - 446 Dead, over 9,000 Wounded, over 1,200 Amputees... fought the CHICKEN-hawk Way... with other people's money and other people's liv

      by RedMeatDem on Mon Dec 08, 2003 at 06:17:58 PM PDT

      [ Parent ]

  •  Re: Dean Lies Re VT Taxes? (none / 0)

    Is it a particle or a wave? Both statements are true... it's just a matter of interpretation.

    Dean did indeed inherent "temporary" tax hikes that were scheduled to end, which were signed into law by his Republican predecessor. However, liberals in Vermont tried to make them permanent to pay for social programs, and Dean fought them and let the tax hike expire instead. So Dean is spinning the truth positively (he "cut taxes" when the tax cuts were scheduled anyway), and the article is spinning negative (his "tax cuts" already existed in law).

    I tend to believe Dean's spin rather than theirs for two reasons. First, he fought his own party on it. Second, he cut taxes again later.

    At any rate, if you're wondering, read Dean's book yourself, rather than relying on media spin from a pro-Kerry paper. He talks about his economic accomplishments in great detail (including tremendous praise for his predecessor's budget wisdom).

    W was elected to protect Them from Us.

    by Radical Middle on Mon Dec 08, 2003 at 06:03:41 PM PDT

  •  Re: Dean Lies Re VT Taxes? (none / 0)

    So? Classical hatchet job.

    Tax cut is tax cut, even if it doesn't require extra legislation, which Dean doesn't even claim.

    He says "We". This involves the whole government, including the legislature.

    He could have pushed for keeping them up, but didn't, then cut them again later.

    by Felix Deutsch on Mon Dec 08, 2003 at 06:05:11 PM PDT

  •  Re: Dean Lies Re VT Taxes? (none / 0)

    Other things to consider...

    The Assault Weapon Ban is set to "sunset" next year - if it is repealed, who gets the credit for that? Clinton? Probably not.

    Several of Bush's tax cuts "sunset" after 10 years. Does anyone really believe that they would let these expire? Doubtful.

    Also ask yourself what the spin would be if the Dean administration had maintained those tax rates, instead of honoring the "sunset". Is that a tax hike? If he had signed a law that maintained the taxes for 1 more week and then dropped them to the "sunset" levels, would Dean get credit for it then?

    The real answer is that most politicians equate "sunset" with "yea, right".

    by dpk on Mon Dec 08, 2003 at 06:12:16 PM PDT

  •  Bullshit/Troll meter in the red (none / 0)

    So now we have the corollary to the wingnuttery "Not Cutting Taxes = Raising Taxes":

    "Taxes falling under a Democratic executive = Not Cutting Taxes"

    by squiddy on Mon Dec 08, 2003 at 06:13:14 PM PDT

  •  Re: Dean Lies Re VT Taxes? (none / 0)

    I tend to believe Dean's spin rather than theirs for two reasons. First, he fought his own party on it. Second, he cut taxes again later.

    Well for anyone reasonable there it is.
    Then again....
    I remember a Drudge (I think it was) headline in summer of 'Dean cheats on taxes' or similiar.

    It was (oddly enough) 76.01, or close to it, in a mistakenly unpaid VT property tax bill, iirc.

    by Marisacat on Mon Dec 08, 2003 at 06:15:19 PM PDT

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