The Voodoo of Dubya-nomics

Why Bush's tax-cut bill doesn't make sense even by its own logic

When Congress passed President Bush's tax bill last week, it had all the major elements he wanted: an immediate general income-tax-rate cut, a big tax break for dividends (plus another for capital gains he didn't request), and new deductions for small businesses. The total cost over 10 years, $350 billion, is less than half the $726 billion Bush asked for, but much of the gap is accounting tricks. The President need not worry that this bill won't cost enough.

Bush's victory is intellectual as well as political. This bill reflects an extraordinary, even radical shift of the tax burden from the...

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