Shallow Republican Talking Point Actually Loses Depth: Or, “Comrade Reagan”

Socialism on the march!

By attacking any form of progressive taxation as “socialism” or “class warfare” in 2008, the GOP arrayed itself fully against any form of intellectual honesty on the issue. After all, if taxing the rich is socialistic, America’s experiment with capitalism ended long, long before January 20, 2009. In fact, by that definition, the father of capitalism himself was a socialist:

The necessaries of life occasion the great expense of the poor. They find it difficult to get food, and the greater part of their little revenue is spent in getting it. … It is not very unreasonable that the rich should contribute to the public expense, not only in proportion to their revenue, but something more than in that proportion. Adam Smith, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776).

This neo-red baiting took yet another turn for the hypocritical yesterday, when Grover Norquist’s far-right “Club for Growth” nominated Governor Charlie Crist (R-FL) for their “Comrade of the Month” award – all because he broke a promise not to raise taxes. Apparently, “socialism” now sweeps within its definition any increase in taxes, period. Mr. Norquist might be surprised to learn that, by this definition, even his hero President Reagan is a “socialist”: Reagan increased taxes at four times during his presidency, including the Tax Reform Act of 1986, which was at the time “the largest corporate tax increase in history.”

Not that there’s anything wrong with that. Taxes and tax increases are facts of life in a modern democracy. It’s time to get beyond the urban legend that taxes are either anti-capitalist, or avoidable. Until we do, I’ll be happy to bandy about the phrase “Comrade Reagan.”