GOP did lower taxes by lowering incomes

Richard Pratt, Henderson

Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009 | 2:02 a.m.

Mike Smith’s cartoon in Tuesday’s edition (seen above) highlighted a thought I have had during the debates over the stimulus package: The Republicans have not been given enough credit for the tax cuts that have gone to corporations and individuals.

Thanks to the Republicans, thousands of companies and millions of people have seen their tax bills reduced or eliminated in the past year. By putting the economy into a tail spin, the Republicans have saved these companies and people millions of dollars in taxes by reducing their taxable income. What a clever way to stimulate the economy.

But to be fair, this was really a bipartisan effort. The Democrats, for sure, had a hand in this and should receive some of the credit. But without Republican leadership, the Democrats would never have been clever enough to think that you can reduce your taxes by reducing your income.

So I really don’t know what the Republicans are complaining about. If the Obama stimulus plan fails, as the Republicans are predicting, then pretty soon nobody will be paying taxes. What more could they ask for?