Seeking Distance: Why Conservatives are Cutting Ties with an Anti-Tax Pledge

By Amy Wagner on December 3, 2012

Grover Norquist is the founder and president of Americans for Tax Reform, the main premise of which is that the power to tax should be greatly minimized in American society. Most importantly, at least within the context of the past week, he is the creator of the Taxpayer Protection Pledge. Beginning in 1986, this pledge sought to bind lawmakers to a vow that they will never raise taxes. The Taxpayer Protection Pledge is not simply an obscure piece of paper – almost every Republican currently in Congress, with the exception of 12 individuals, has signed it. It has maintained influence among the Republican party since its inception, in addition to gaining almost unanimous support. In a 2010 article for the conservative publication Human Events, Norquist identified one of the main impetuses behind the creation of this pledge, sharing his opinion that “raising taxes is what politicians do when they don’t have the strength to actually govern…[this pledge] was created…as part of the effort to protect the lower marginal tax rates of Reagan’s Tax Reform Act of 1986.” He goes on to describe his creation as “one of the few yes or no answers that politicians are forced to give to voters before they ask for their vote.” 

Photo from Flickr.com by Tax Credits

But this influential pledge is beginning to lose considerable backing within conservative circles. It has recently come to light that politicians who, in addition to Norquist, could best be described as conservative have begun to distance themselves from this promise. So far, individuals who have denounced it include Senators Lindsey Graham, John McCain, Saxby Chambliss, and Bob Corker. Among the others are Representatives Peter King and Chris Gibson, and, perhaps most notably, Speaker of the House John Boehner and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor. Sen. Corker informed constituents that he was “not obligated on the pledge.” Meanwhile, Sen. Chambliss confidently told a Georgia news station that “I care a lot more about my country– I care a lot more about it than I do about Grover Norquist.”

It should be noted that the influence and credibility these particular politicians have in the Republican party cannot be overstated. These men are not only revered in their own party, but also among Americans who take a conservative approach to politics. So why are these individuals, who all signed the pledge with enthusiasm upon entering office, retracting their statement to never raise taxes?  The reason for this is intimately linked to the upcoming Republican fiscal cliff compromise. Politicians from both sides of the aisle are furiously seeking a solution to this ever-pressing fiscal issue, and conservatives are focusing on a plan to raise tax revenue by eliminating potential deductions as well as closing possible tax loopholes.

But how is this plan connected to Grover Norquist? Under his strict rules as they are laid out in the pledge, these seemingly small modifications to the tax system count as a tax increase. Therefore, they are to remain absolutely forbidden. A Senate aide who asked not to be named recently stated that although Republicans and Democrats often take different approaches to taxation, Norquist remains “totally isolated in considering the elimination of tax credits to be a tax increase…the pledge just doesn’t reflect the reality of how tax policy works.” It appears that this anti-tax activist is beginning to lose his considerable influence, even among people who share most of his ideologies.

As Rep. Peter King of New York recently told NBC’s Meet the Press, “the world has changed, and the economic situation is different.” Perhaps it is time for everyone to realize that what worked in 1986 may not work today, and that seemingly immobile economic ideas must be altered to fit the current fiscal climate.

Photo from wikipedia.com

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