Forbes seems to have said that the fee increases Romney sought and got in Massachusetts were identical to tax increases. McCain has said much the same thing. I think Forbes and McCain are wrong about this. There’s a good reason that Grover Norquist’s taxpayer protection pledge does not insist that its takers refuse ever to increase fees. Some fees simply defray the cost of a government service. To raise those fees to keep up with the cost of providing that service seems miles away from a tax increase. Now Norquist insists that the user fees really have to be user fees, and not just disguised taxes. But in principle a user fee and a tax are different beasts, and you would think that Steve Forbes, of all people, would see that.