At the Iowans for Tax Relief/Iowa Christian Alliance candidate forum last month, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney dodged the question of whether he would support the so-called Fair Tax, eliciting a “cool response” from the crowd. In an interview today with Iowa Independent, Romney spokesman Tim Albrecht declined to comment on the Fair Tax. But grassroots conservatives in Iowa have flocked to the issue, and Romney’s apparent opposition could become an obstacle for the state’s current front-runner.

After the candidate forum, David Yepsen of the Des Moines Register wrote:

Mitt Romney, one of the leaders in the GOP race, lost ground when he declined to take a position on whether a national sales tax should replace the income tax. (He said he hasn’t had time to study it. But he’s been saying that for months now and the debate over a national sales tax or a national flat tax is a serious division inside his party.)

“The governor’s tax plan is going to reward workers and families in America,” Albrecht told Iowa Independent today. “He’ll abolish the death tax and will make President Bush’s tax cuts permanent. That’s meaningful tax reform that he will fight for as president.”

But the Fair Tax has become a rallying cry for grassroots conservatives across the state. Former Arksansas Gov. Mike Huckabee has made it a regular part of his stump speech. Americans for Fair Taxation’s FairTax.org lists every Republican presidential candidate as a supporter of the Fair Tax, except for Romney, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback. Even former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson, who has not yet announced his intention to run, is listed as a supporter. Texas Congressman Ron Paul is listed as N/A.

(Although Americans for Fair Taxation is “nonpartisan,” the organization does not list the one Democratic presidential candidate who supports the Fair Tax — former Alaska Sen. Mike Gravel. The site does list Oklahoma Congressman Dan Boren as the sole Democrat in Congress who supports the measure.)

So what is the Fair Tax? It would eliminate all federal income taxes (along with the Internal Revenue Service) and establish a national sales tax, with a tax prebate to help poorer Americans. Some, like Huckabee and Gravel, argue that with the prebate, it would be a system of progressive taxation, while most opponents — and Democrats — argue that the sales tax and lack of income tax would create a more regressive system.

While many may not know the intricacies of the Fair Tax proposal, grassroots conservatives in the Hawkeye state are looking for candidates to support the policy. Romney currently leads in most polls of Iowa caucus-goers. But as other candidates look to chip away at the front-runner, Romney’s ambivalence on the Fair Tax could become a potent weapon, fair or not.

Cross-posted at Iowa Independent 

Posted by Ben Weyl
Thursday, July 26, 2007 at 5:15 pm

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