Legal Commentary

How The Excise Tax Undermines A Populist Message

By Big Tent Democrat

The principal architect and proponent of the excise tax, Jon Gruber, is one of the signatories to the letter urging passage of the Stand Alone Senate bill sent to House leaders. As I explained before, whatever you think of the merits of the excise tax, it is the principal stumbling block for passage of the Senate bill in the House. But it also would be a principal obstacle to a populist message for the Dems in the 2010 elections. As I wrote about earlier, John Judis argues that the biggest problem with the Senate health bill is the perception that it harms middle class voters at the expense of corporation and the wealthy:

Where Obama invited a voter backlash was by letting the burden of reducing health care costs appear to fall on senior citizens and those middle-class workers who had acquired good health insurance through decades of union battles with management, and not on the insurance and drug companies. Obama ceded too much to the policy wonks who were devising intricate schemes to show they could cut the deficit. He took his eye of off the political imperative of keeping middle America in his corner.

The excise tax was a political poison pill. Ironically, there is a chance to fix that now. Dems should jump at the chance.

Speaking for me only

Full post as published by TalkLeft on January 22, 2010 (boomark / email).