Billionaire former presidential candidate Steve Forbes has endorsed Rudy Giuliani. Giuliani followed the Forbes endorsement up by voicing support for Forbes’ signature issue: the flat tax. One awkward wrinkle, though, is that Giuliani had previously bashed the flat tax.
In 1996, when Mr. Forbes first ran for president, Mr. Giuliani, then the mayor of New York City, disparaged a flat tax in general and Mr. Forbes’s plan in particular. The Forbes plan called for a single tax rate above a certain income, instead of several rates based on income. Mr. Giuliani said that a central part of the proposal, eliminating deductions, would hurt taxpayers in urban areas and reduce tax revenues for populous cities and states.
“You’re giving them more authority, more autonomy, and you’re giving them less resources to deal with the problems,” he said then in an interview with CBS, calling the proposal “a mistake.”
He used stronger language on CNN a few days later, saying the Forbes plan “would really be a disaster.”
Obviously flip-flops by Republican front-runners are so common, they hardly merit pointing out. If anyone has a GPS tracking where Giuliani, Romney and McCain actually stand, let me know.
The Forbes endorsement probably hurts Sam Brownback more than anyone else. The flat tax is part of Brownback’s campaign platform and he has hired a former Forbes staffers. Forbes endorsement would have been a huge score for Brownback; it’s not clear whether or not Forbes ever considered giving it to him.
The flat tax remains an issue with an important constituency in Iowa. Forbes will be a very useful surrogate for Giuliani there and in other early primary states. He will help further legitimize Giuliani’s position on taxation for conservative voters.
What’s not clear is whether Giuliani’s support of the flat tax yesterday when receiving Forbes’ endorsement will translate into adding the flat tax to his campaign platform. “[Giuliani] said several times yesterday that the federal tax code should be vastly simpler.” Does wanting a simpler tax code and having Steve Forbes at your side make it more likely that you’ll become a flat taxer? Sure, but is Giuliani prepared for yet another YouTube video showing him bashing something he now supports (or supporting something he now bashes)?
Technorati Tags: flat tax, Rudy Giuliani, Sam Brownback, Steve Forbes
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