TAXES DON'T GO UP:

[P]erhaps the most interesting aspect of Obama's plan is what it augurs for the G.O.P. nomination fight. To be sure, there's very little chance that any of the Republican candidates will embrace the idea of raising tax levies on the rich. Many of those expected to run have signed Grover Norquist's pledge never to raise taxes under any circumstances; reneging would plunge them into an unholy war with the right. "Raising taxes on people that are successful is not going to make people that are struggling more successful," Senator Marco Rubio, who also appeared on "Face the Nation," said. "The good news about free enterprise is that everyone can succeed without punishing anyone."

But just because Rubio and his fellow Presidential hopefuls won't support the first half of Obama's plan doesn't mean they can't embrace the tax-cutting half. To the contrary, it's easy to imagine middle-class tax cuts emerging as a central issue in the G.O.P. primaries, with the candidates vying to outdo one another. And, unlike Hillary and her economic advisers, the G.O.P. hopefuls are unlikely to be overly concerned with how to pay for the giveaways they propose.

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