[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvK7P9fR8BY[/youtube]
John Kyl tells us all how the repubs play their low information base:
KYL: It is true that the question of earmarks is more symbolic than it is significant in terms of the total amount of money. But if he combines that with the notion of ending wasteful Washington spending…And so if addition to earmarks, which are relatively small, you begin to focus on not just raising taxes but to reducing spending here and there, that is a big deal.
McCain has said that he can rid the budget of $100 million in earmarks, even though the 2008 appropriations bills has about $20 billion of earmarks included. But at the risk of burying the lead here, it looks to me that not only is Kyl admitting that ridding the budget of earmarks makes dent in nothing, he is also talking about raising taxes. Wonder who gets to pay those?
And note how he admits they use poll-driven language:
“The reason that I use it is because the consultants who look at the polls tell us that if there’s anything that drives American taxpayers crazy it’s that phrase ‘wasteful Washington spending,’” he admitted. “They hate it.”
Even though most folks can’t name one non-mandatory program they’d eliminate that would put a serious dent in the deficit (and lets define serious dent at 10% reduction. And none of them will name any of the gigantic tax subsidies provided to business or farms. But they are listening to McCain make the same promises that the GOPers have been making since BushCo started running; even though McCain certainly didn’t object to the wholesale transfer of tax dollars to their friends.
h/t Think Progress