FairTax and Huckabee

A reader of my blog posted the following comment and I'm posting it to the front page for more visibility/searchability. Thanks so much for the post Ian!

Gov. Huckabee's advocacy of the FairTax is the single most important policy position in this election. Research findings explain why:

The FairTax rate of 23 percent on a total taxable consumption base of $11.244 trillion will generate $2.586 trillion dollars – $358 billion more than the taxes it replaces [BHKPT].

The FairTax has the broadest base and the lowest rate of any single-rate tax reform plan [THBP].

Real wages are 10.3 percent, 9.5 percent, and 9.2 percent higher in years 1, 10, and 25, respectively than would otherwise be the case [THBNP].

The economy as measured by GDP is 2.4 percent higher in the first year and 11.3 percent higher by the 10th year than it would otherwise be [ALM].

Consumption benefits [ALM]:

• Disposable personal income is higher than if the current tax system remains in place: 1.7 percent in year 1, 8.7 percent in year 5, and 11.8 percent in year 10.

• Consumption increases by 2.4 percent more in the first year, which grows to 11.7 percent more by the tenth year than it would be if the current system were to remain in place.

• The increase in consumption is fueled by the 1.7 percent increase in disposable (after-tax) personal income that accompanies the rise in incomes from capital and labor once the FairTax is enacted.

• By the 10th year, consumption increases by 11.7 percent over what it would be if the current tax system remained in place, and disposable income is up by 11.8 percent.

Over time, the FairTax benefits all income groups. Of 42 household types (classified by income, marital status, age), all have lower average remaining lifetime tax rates under the FairTax than they would experience under the current tax system [KR].

Implementing the FairTax at a 23 percent rate gives the poorest members of the generation born in 1990 a 13.5 percent improvement in economic well-being; their middle class and rich contemporaries experience a 5 percent and 2 percent improvement, respectively [JK].

Based on standard measures of tax burden, the FairTax is more progressive than the individual income tax, payroll tax, and the corporate income tax [THBPN].

Charitable giving increases by $2.1 billion (about 1 percent) in the first year over what it would be if the current system remained in place, by 2.4 percent in year 10, and by 5 percent in year 20 [THPDB].

On average, states could cut their sales tax rates by more than half, or 3.2 percentage points from 5.4 to 2.2 percent, if they conformed their state sales tax bases to the FairTax base [TBJ].

The FairTax provides the equivalent of a supercharged mortgage interest deduction, reducing the true cost of buying a home by 19 percent [WM].

ALERT: Kotlikoff refutes Bruce Bartlett's shabby critiques of the FairTax.

John McCain: Shoots Himself in the Foot?

John McCain's Gun Control Problem
by John Velleco
Director of Federal Affairs
Gun Owners of America

In 2000, Andrew McKelvey, the billionaire founder of monster.com, threw a sizable chunk of his fortune into the gun control debate.

It was shortly after the Columbine school shooting. Bill Clinton was in the White House and gun control was daily front-page news. McKelvey wanted in.

He started out contributing to Handgun Control Inc., which had since been renamed the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. But while he agreed with their gun banning goals, McKelvey thought the way they packaged their message was too polarizing.

"I told them that Handgun Control was the wrong name. I thought what they were doing was great but I thought it could be done differently," McKelvey said.

So McKelvey struck out on his own and formed Americans for Gun Safety. Although AGS shared almost identical public policy goals as other anti-gun groups, McKelvey portrayed the group as in the 'middle' on the issue and attempted to lure pro-gun advocates into his fold.

To pull it off, he needed a bipartisan coalition with credibility on both sides of the gun debate. On the anti-gun side, the task was easy. Most of the Democrats and a small but vocal minority of Republicans supported President Clinton's gun control agenda.

Finding someone who could stake a claim as a pro-gunner and yet be willing to join McKelvey was not so easy. Enter Senator John McCain.

McCain's star was already falling with conservatives. He had carved out a niche as a 'maverick' as the author of so-called Campaign Finance Reform (more aptly named the incumbent protection act), which was anathema to conservatives but made him a darling of the mainstream media.

Gun owners were outraged over CFR, but McCain still maintained some credibility on the gun issue.

Earlier in his career, McCain had voted against the Clinton crime bill (which contained a ban on so-called assault weapons), and he did not join the 16 Senate Republicans who voted for the Brady bill, which required a five-day waiting period for the purchase of a handgun.

But as he ramped up for his presidential run in 2000, McCain, expanding on the 'maverick' theme, staked out a position on guns far to the left of his primary opponent, George W. Bush.

McCain began speaking out against small, inexpensive handguns and he entertained the idea of supporting the 'assault weapons' ban. His flirtation with anti-Second Amendment legislation quickly led to a political marriage of convenience with McKelvey.

Within months of the formation of AGS, McCain was featured in radio and television ads in Colorado and Oregon supporting initiatives to severely regulate gun shows and register gun buyers. Anti-gunners were ecstatic to get McCain on board.

Political consultant Scott Reed, who managed Bob Dole's presidential campaign in 1996, hoped McCain would "bring a conservative perspective to the gun debate."

The ads not only pushed the anti-gun show measure in those two states, they also served to undermine the efforts of gun rights activists who were furiously lobbying against the same type of bill in Congress.

"I think that if the Congress won't act, the least I can do is support the initiative in states where it's on the ballot," McCain said in an interview.

At the time still a newcomer to the gun control debate, McCain said, "I do believe my view has evolved."

McCain continued to pursue his anti-gun agenda even after his presidential run ended, and the next year he and McKelvey made it to the big screen.

As moviegoers flocked to see Pearl Harbor, they were treated to an anti-gun trailer ad featuring McCain. This time the Senator was pushing legislation to force people to keep firearms locked up in the home.

"We owe it to our children to be responsible by keeping our guns locked up," McCain told viewers.

Economist and author John Lott, Jr., noted, "No mention was ever made by McCain about using guns for self-defense or that gunlocks might make it difficult to stop intruders who break into your home. And research indicates that McCain's push for gunlocks is far more likely to lead to more deaths than it saves."

Also in 2001, McCain went from being a supporter of anti-gun bills to being a lead sponsor.

Pro-gun allies in Congress who were holding off gun show legislation -- which would at best register gun owners and at worst close down the shows entirely -- were angered when McCain teamed up with Sen. Joe Lieberman (D-CT) and introduced a "compromise" bill to give the issue momentum.

"There is a lot of frustration. He has got his own agenda," one Republican Senator told Roll Call.

After September 11, 2001, McKelvey and McCain, now joined by Lieberman, had a new angle to push gun control.

"Terrorists are exploiting the gun show loophole," AGS ads hyped. McCain and Lieberman hit the airwaves again in a series of radio and TV spots, thanks to McKelvey's multi-million dollar investment.

A Cox News Service article noted that, "The ads first focused on gun safety but switched to terrorism after Sept. 11. Americans for Gun Safety said the switch is legitimate."

However, Second Amendment expert Dave Kopel pointed out that, "the McCain-Lieberman bill is loaded with poison pills which would allow a single appointed official to prevent any gun show, anywhere in the United States from operating."

Ultimately, the anti-gun legislation was killed in the Congress and AGS fizzled out and disappeared altogether. The issues for which McKelvey spent over $10 million are still in play, however, and John McCain remains a supporter of those causes. In fact, as recently as 2004, McCain was able to force a vote on a gun show amendment.

In the post-Columbine and post-9/11 environments, the Second Amendment was under attack as never before. Pro-gun patriotic Americans who stood as a bulwark to keep the Congress from eviscerating the Constitution were dismayed to look across the battle lines only to see Senator McCain working with the enemy.

John McCain tried running for president in 2000 as an anti-gunner. This year it appears he is seeking to "come home" to the pro-gun community, but the wounds are deep and memories long.

Why Not McCain? Why Huckabee?

I will be doing an essay on why I cannot support McCain for President later on. But before I write that article, I'd like to tell you why I'm for Huckabee a little bit instead of why I'm against McCain.

- Pro-life: Mike values life from when it starts: conception.

- Pro-family: the best and happiest families are families that have a mom and a dad. If we redefine marriage to be something other than a woman and a man living together and loving each other, we've redefined the very basic unit of society and have taken the ultimate step towards destroying our nation.

- Pro-small-business: America runs on the small business, not just the mega-corporation. The very basis of the American dream is that I can become self-employed and make a living doing something I love. Big government and big business are two siblings who when paired together tend to restrict and stifle small business enterprise. Mike wants to get the government out of the way of everyday people.

- Pro-second amendment: Mike Huckabee supports the second amendment, but does not apply it to just hunting. He realizes that Americans need to be able to defend themselves from the government in event that it gets so large and so out of control that they need to take it out.

- Pro-FairTax: It's been long said that there are two inescapable realities in life: death and taxes. But imagine choosing what taxes you'll pay? With the FairTax (which BTW, has been thought up by some very smart folks but is also supported by every day citizens like you and me), you only pay taxes on stuff that you choose to purchase. Most people will save a ton of money with the FairTax. Check out the FairTax calculator here to see just how much you'll save!

- Pro-America: the above reasons are just a start of why you should support Huckabee. The biggest reason is that he loves America and knows that it is a great nation and "the last best hope for humanity." More than 300 million reasons why you should vote for Huckabee!

Still Believe in Ronald Reagan's Legacy

Now that Romney's out... what's next?

Or do I really need to ask? For those Romney supporters out there that absolutely hate McCain and want the best for our country, I recommend that you please take a look again at Huckabee. I think you'll find that he is a much better option than voting for no one.

Should Mitt Romney Drop out of the Race?

Last night was bad for Mitt Romney. He's spent millions upon millions of dollars only to be trumped by a liberal. If John McCain is worse than Hillary Clinton as many talk show hosts would have you believe, then why is it that some conservatives choose him over Mitt Romney? Why is it that in the most important races for the GOP last night he came in not second, but third? I don't know about you, but it looks like that when Mitt goes up against a liberal he loses. For example in MO last night, if Mitt Romney hadn't been in the race, I'm confident that Mike would have ousted McCain.

Mitt Romney is a spoiler to the true conservative who is the only candidate who has any chance against the Dems next year.

Winning where it counts...

Last night was a surprise.... a big surprise for a lot of us and a big surprise for even me.

Huckabee won in the important states. Most people agree that next year, in order for the Republican to win in the general election, we will need to win in states like Alabama, Georgia, Arkansas, Tennessee. These are exactly the states that Mike win and Mitt Romney placed a distant third. Places like California and NY where McCain won are going to go for the Democrat anyways. So what should conservatives do? They should unite behind the one candidate who has good ideas for the future of America. They should get behind Mike Huckabee all the way to the White House.