LOOKING FOR MR. "I'M ONLY KIND OF PRO-TAX HIKE"?:

Who Can Beat George W. Bush?: The pundits are whispering that either Dean or Gephardt is likely to be the Democratic nominee. Which one of them can win? (Jack Beatty, 11/26/03, Atlantic Monthly)

Another candidate could emerge, but let's assume this primary sprint will come down to Dean vs. Gephardt. Which man would be the stronger candidate against the President?

They share a liability that makes them weaker candidates than the other Democratic prospects: they would repeal all of the Bush tax cuts. Senators Kerry, Edwards, and Lieberman, as well as General Wesley Clark, would repeal only the cuts for the wealthiest Americans, leaving in place the child tax credit and other elements of the cuts for the middle class. In the first presidential debate, if either Dean or Gephardt is the nominee, George W. Bush will point to his opponent and say, "If your family income is $40,000 a year, this man will raise your taxes by over $1,200"—and for once, he'd be telling the truth about the distribution of his tax cuts. Gephardt or Dean would counter, "Yes, Mr. President, but with that $1,200 we will fund health insurance and education programs worth much more than that to middle-income families." But the programs are promises; the $1,200 savings is cash in hand.

That debate moment is the best argument for nominating someone other than Gephardt or Dean.

The answer to Mr. Beatty's question, as even he seems to realize, is: no one.

Posted by Orrin Judd at November 26, 2003 8:49 PM