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Taxing issue in Pa. special election
Pennsylvania congressional candidate Tim Burns (R) is caught in the middle of a debate over the so-called FairTax.
Pennsylvania congressional candidate Tim Burns (R) is caught in the middle of a debate over the so-called FairTax.
The FairTax plan, which is championed by a Texas-based advocacy group, calls for the replacement of federal income and payroll taxes with a national sales tax of 23 percent.
A recent Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee TV spot blasted him for supporting “a 23 percent national sales tax.” The ad’s narrator asks, “What will it cost you?”
The Burns campaign called the ad a “lie.”
“I do not support the [FairTax],” Burns said in a statement. “In fact, you’ve probably heard that I did, but that is one of the lies that are being told by my opponents. … I want to make it clear that I do not support the [FairTax].”
While Burns fends off attacks that he supports the FairTax, the group FairTax National Victory Campaign is launching a $50,000 radio ad buy in the 12th district advocating for the measure.
Ken Hoagland, who chairs the group, said he’s seen candidates back away from supporting the tax reform before.
Burns “has taken a few steps back from his initial statement of support for the FairTax, where he would ultimately like us to go — that’s not unusual,” Hoagland said. “Very few people will actually stand their ground and say, ‘Look, this is the best way to go.’ ”
Hoagland said his group is forming a political action committee this cycle, which will donate to candidates who support their cause. “From now on, if you lie about the FairTax, you’re going to be made to pay a price with the voters,” he said.
“In the past, campaigns have found it easier to lie about the FairTax than to defend the corrupted income tax system,” Hoagland noted. “Deliberate distortions about the FairTax will now be equally toxic.”
Hoagland said other candidates will defend their support of the FairTax if they’re backed by strong national organization.
“If it becomes funded as well as I think it may be funded, you’ll see us playing in a lot of races,” he said.
The special election is May 18. Polls show it to be a tight race but give Burns a small lead.
— S.J.M.
BARBARA Boxer invites rival to fundraiser
Sen. Barbara Boxer’s (D-Calif.) campaign reached out to Republican rival Carly Fiorina for help this week — but not on purpose.
Boxer’s fundraising team sent an invite to Fiorina’s personal e-mail asking her to attend the campaign’s May 25 event with President Barack Obama in San Francisco.
The invitation states, “With the June Primary upon us, Sen. Boxer needs to be prepared to face the ‘fight of her life.’ Your support is critical.”
It offers prospective donors who raise $20,000 the chance of attending a “private clutch,” presumably with Boxer and Obama.
Fiorina won’t be able to make it, according to campaign spokeswoman Amy Thoma. “Sadly, she’ll have to decline, as she’ll be out giving Boxer the referenced ‘fight of her life.’ ”
The Boxer camp confirmed the e-mail was authentic but noted it went to “thousands” of people.
Fiorina wasn’t the only Republican on the list — her campaign manager, Marty Wilson, got the invite last week.
— S.J.M.
Three new Pennsylvania Senate polls, three different results
Three new polls out Wednesday show how close the Democratic Senate primary in Pennsylvania has become.
One poll has incumbent Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) in the lead, one has challenger Rep. Joe Sestak (D-Pa.) in the lead and the other has the race tied.
Specter leads 44 percent to 42 in a Quinnipiac poll; Sestak leads 38-36 in a Franklin & Marshall poll; and a Muhlenberg survey has the two tied at 45 percent.
The primary is May 18.
Whichever poll is right, it’s been a big fall for Specter. Polls at the end of March had him leading Sestak by 20 points. Sestak, however, had nowhere to go but up, particularly as he built his name recognition around the state, but the recent primary defeats of incumbents Sen. Bob Bennett (R-Utah) and Rep. Alan Mollohan (D-W.Va.) have to have Specter worried.
“Sen. Arlen Specter has a history of winning close elections, and he’ll need that to continue because his once-commanding lead is gone. His margin over Sestak is too close to call,” wrote Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, in his analysis of the race.
There may still be voters to win over. The Franklin & Marshall poll shows that 15 percent remain undecided.
— Emily Goodin
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