Romney Still the Frontrunner
Posted in Main Blog (All Posts) on August 11th, 2011 4:39 am by HL
Romney Still the Frontrunner
A new Fox News poll shows Mitt Romney still leading the GOP presidential field among likely primary voters with 21%, followed by Rick Perry at 13%, Sarah Palin at 8%, Rep. Michele Bachmann at 7%, Rudy Giuliani at 7%, Rep. Ron Paul at 6% and Newt Gingrich at 6%.
Romney Boasted of Tax Increases
Mitt Romney boasted this week that when he Massachusetts governor “he presided over an increase in the state’s bond rating, a contrast to President Obama, who saw Standard & Poor’s downgrade U.S. debt,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
But Romney had an advantage that Obama sorely wanted but could not get from Congress: tax increases and the closing of tax “loopholes.”
Documents show the Romney administration’s pitch to S&P in late 2004 included the boast that “The Commonwealth acted decisively to address the fiscal crisis” that ensued after the terrorist attacks of 2001. Bulleted PowerPoint slides laid out the actions taken, including legislation in July 2002 to increase tax revenue by $1.1 billion to $1.2 billion in fiscal 2003 and $1.5 billion to $1.6 billion in fiscal 2004; tax “loophole” legislation that added $269 million in “additional recurring revenue,” and tax amnesty legislation that added $174 million. The final bullet: “FY04 budget increased fees to raise $271 million yearly.”