Frank Luntz, coming off his bravura performance trying to stop financial reform by labelling it a “bailout fund” regardless of what’s actually in the bill, is back for an encore. In the latest display of the rhetorical pretzel bending for which he’s famous, he explains why financial reform is a sham:
The Democrats supporting the current legislation have assured an anxious electorate that whatever funds are used to create whatever regulatory scheme created will come from the banks, not the taxpayers. Let me emphasize that so that even casual readers will catch it: the Democrats promise that you won’t pay for their legislation, banks will.
Really?
Since when have corporations ever paid taxes, fees or penalties? Employees end up paying in the form of lower salaries and benefits. Customers end up paying in the form of higher costs.
And in this case, every account holder will be forced to pay higher fees on their checking account and savings account. That’s you, my friendly reader. Can you say “checkbook tax”? I can, and I think lots of candidates will be saying it come November.
Yeah, I think Frank can say “checkbook tax.” I also think he can write it, post it, put it on billboards, and tap it out in Morse code. But he might have bitten off more than he can chew this time. Tax incidence theory does indeed suggest that taxes on corporations are partly passed through to consumers, but Republicans have never had any notable success convincing Joe Sixpack of this, despite almost endless efforts to do so.
Still, forewarned is forearmed. At least we know which particular brand of sophistry is likely to sweep like a firestorm through Fox/Rush/Drudge land over the next few days. Keep your eyes peeled.
