Guess they really, really should have read that study

The Republican National Committee really wanted to stick it to Democratic legislators for that time they totally punted on holding a vote on the future of the Bush-era tax cuts. And so, they armed themselves with a shiny new study from the Tax Foundation that they thought really aided their criticism. “What excuse will the Democrats use now?”

As it happens, the study compared the actual Dem plan with the GOP one. And it found that for a family of four with an income of $40,000, the Dem plan — continuing the low end tax cuts, plus the stimulus measures — would cause a 7.8 percent jump in after-tax income. That jump would only be 6.8 percent under the GOP plan to continue all the Bush tax cuts.



The Reagan Test

The ‘Reagan Test – aka Purity Test’  is again being proposed for the Republican Party to implement.  The logic behind this  is because Scott Brown won in a Democratic state,  now is the time to ensure only ‘pure’ Republicans are the candidates who will receive GOP money and support.

But it looks like there are cracks in this teapot, as well.  Seems there is a group of Republicans who see Scott Brown as a person who would fail the proposed Reagan Test. 

Who is correct in their assessment?  Is Scott Brown the future Reagan of the Republican Party or did he just benefit from the backlash of the majority of Independents who were sending a message to the Democrats and the Establishment?  I guess time will tell, won’t it?

Lilac

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/26/after-browns-win-gop-officials-weigh-purity-test/

RNC spending more than it raised

According to an article at The Hill —

A 2009 spending spree has left the Republican National Committee (RNC) with its worst election-year cash flow this decade.  The RNC had $22.8 million in cash and no debt when Michael Steele was elected chairman at the end of January, but has since seen its cash on hand drop to less than $9 million at the end of November.

It will be interesting to follow the money, and equally interesting to see how long Michael Steele keeps his job.  It’s sad that the party that was once well-respected for their fiscal restraint now outspends their fund raising performance.  Could they instigate an almighty tax cut of some sort?   They say tax cuts are the solution for all economic woes!

One of the comments to this story is worth repeating here —  “If the Republicans are not frugal with money that was given to them voluntarily, just imagine how they’ll waste money raised through taxes. The Myth of Republican Frugality has taken another hit.”

fnord