GOP caving to class warfare

Over the years, Democrats have turned class warfare into an art form, but lately the experts are being taught a thing or two about pitting one class against another by none other than their Republican counterparts.

To review, Democrats' most favorite class-warfare tactic is, of course, to portray themselves as champions of the "little guy," the "working family," and the underprivileged – the same kind of people that are nowhere to be found when the party takes to raising campaign funds. Can you seriously imagine the likes of pretty boy Sen. John Edwards, Rep. Dick Gephardt, Al Gore or Bill Clinton stumping for coin on the rickety porch of some dirt farmer in rural Illinois or backwoods Georgia? Me, either.

But all of this championing of the "little guy" has taken place on the backs of anyone who has been fortunate and skillful enough to earn more than just a basic living. Led by Democrats, Congress over the years has implemented a hugely unfair tax system that burdens the middle-class and well-to-do with more than 95 percent of all income taxes, all while sparing "the little guy."

Meanwhile, Democrats have been buying "the little guy's" votes with innumerable entitlements and hand-outs – all paid for, of course, by those earning enough to qualify for 95 percent of the income-tax burden.

TRENDING: Caught red-handed

This is where it gets really freaky.

Since taking office, President Bush has managed to get two tax cuts passed – cuts that, rightly, "favor" the middle-class and wealthy. The next-best thing would be for Republicans to also cut the size of bureaucracy, meaning fewer taxes would be needed to run our government in the first place. But that's another story.

The first cuts, predictably, triggered a response from Democratic demagogues who attempted to score some political points by pointing out, correctly, that those twin tax cuts "benefit the middle class and wealthy." What they conveniently forget to mention, however, is that they benefit those two classes of wage earners because those two classes of wage earners are paying nearly all of the income tax. Can I have a "duh," please?

The GOP was on a roll and at the president's direction, the party moved to pass another round of tax cuts. Upon passage in the Republican-controlled Senate last week, Democrats again immediately launched into their "tax-cut-for-the-rich" mantra. After all, it's their standard operating procedure – though it's hard to figure why, since all Democratic members of Congress are in the salary range affected by tax cuts they are opposing.

But this time, strangely enough, though Americans weren't buying in to the Democrat hyperbole – polls show most favored the cuts – Republicans did. GOP leaders are working to extend billions more in child tax credits to wage earners who don't pay much income tax. So, not only are these lower-income earners getting a break by paying no taxes, now they will be getting a rebate of taxes paid by others.

Can I have a "theft by any other name," please?

On top of this, middle- and upper-income Americans must still surrender much of their estate to the government in the form of "death taxes" when they die (most "little guys" don't have an "estate"). Middle- and upper-income Americans are still paying premium tax rates on investment returns (most "little guys" don't have much of a portfolio). And "the rich" are still getting soaked for nearly all of this country's income taxes, while "the little guy" now has another ally and benefactor in Congress. Vote-buying is, after all, expensive.

While most middle- and upper-income Americans appreciated the GOP-led tax cuts, they have never appreciated Democrat-style class warfare. It's a safe bet they don't appreciate Republicans stealing Democratic class-warfare thunder, either.

Seems Robin Hood has some competition. And productive, successful people have a another congressional enemy.