The Democrats have a real chance to pull an upset in the fall elections, if they can get their message straight. They’ve got to pull out some fresh ideas, and presesnt them in interesting ways. The place to do this, of course, is the Democratic National Convention this summer. Here’s a couple of ideas that I think could make for a winning strategy this summer:
1. Flat Tax. Weird, right? But think about it: If the Dems became the party of the flat tax, they’d completely own the debate. See this Forbes article for a good primer (OK, so as a Forbes publication, they’re probably obligated to argue for a flat tax, but nevertheless…) Why is it that I paid 20-something percent of my income in taxes last year and Dick Cheney paid 12 percent? The problem with the current tax structure isn’t that it puts too much burden on the rich, as George Bush would have you believe, but rather too little. Make a flat tax at say, 20 percent, exempt everyone who makes below a certain threshold (say $20K a year), eliminate all other exemptions and loopholes, and fire all the tax attorneys and accountants who spend their lives exploiting those exemptions and loopholes.
2. Fair Districts In the wake of Colorado and Texas, this one’s a no-brainer. Time to steal the moral high ground on this from the Republicans. In 1994, the Republicans won big time by embracing “term limits,” playing to voters who were sick of entrenched career politicians. The voters’ anger was justified, but the solution of term limits was wrong. We need to admit that in a partisan age, when marching orders are handed down from party heaquarters, it no longer makes sense to have state legislatures drawing congressional boundaries. We need independent districting commissions, like they have in Iowa. This report from the Cato Institute lays out the argument quite nicely. By creating competitive congressional districts, we can work to eliminate extremism in the House of Representatives, and encourage more moderate voices.
I’ll have more to say on all of this in the coming weeks.
Now Playing: Episode 349
Troops needed in Afghanistan end up in Iraq, Obama punts on the FISA bill, and finally: the Supremes rule on the 2nd amendment.
Links Mentioned: The hunt for Bin Laden … the new Army Iraq report … the FISA bill … the Prof references Chinua Achebe and The Lives of Others … the Genarlow Wilson aftermath.
