Beaver Boundary: Novick and Taxes

Today, Beaver Boundary takes a look at Steve Novick's record of advocating for taxes. While agreeing with him in principle, blogger Taoiseach is concerned about the impact of Novick's long record on his ability to compete with Senator Gordon Smith.

Surely, Novick’s advocacy for higher capital gains taxes and a better public understanding of government revenue is adamantly progressive. The intellectual authority with which he is regarded on federal and state taxation is a feature not only of his expertise but also his passion for government spending and programs. ...

In Oregon, we may love dreamers, but we sure don’t love taxes. And if Steve Novick has made a living on the promotion and celebration of taxes, Democrats need to recognize the potential weapon they would be turning over to the Smith camp to turn off all of those economically-libertarian independent voters on which so many close, critical elections of late have dependent. If Steve Novick becomes the nominee, how often will we see [Oregonian reporter Betsy] Hammond’s headline and story about tax-loving Novick? And, more importantly, how often will Oregonians outside of Portland see that meme?

Steve Novick may want Oregonians to cozy up to the fact that taxes should be embraced rather than feared. But the string of anti-tax votes in localities of late, from Jackson County to Lane County, shows that his efforts have not been entirely successful. And it is certainly not a winning strategy for a Democrat to celebrate taxes on the stump, when one is least likely to be convinced that government spending is great.

There's much more over at Beaver Boundary, including a discussion about whether Novick should have waited for Blumenauer to vacate the congressional seat.

Read the rest. Discuss over there.

Oct. 15, 2007 Posted in elsewhere.