Over on the home page, I have a chat with Sen. Pat Toomey, Pennsylvania Republican and member of the now-disbanded supercommittee. Toomey received a lot of grief over his proposal that would have matched $750 billion in spending cuts to $250 billion in tax increases — a combination of slightly lower rates and eliminated or reduced deductions for the top two income brackets.
While Toomey is tight-lipped about conversations behind closed doors on the supercommittee, there were numerous reports that some Republicans on and off it were willing to accept tax hikes beyond $250 billion. His proposal — and the Democrats’ wholesale rejection of it — helped illustrate that to much of the president’s party, tax increases are not about increasing revenue to reduce the deficit and debt, but a punitive measure designed to hurt those who liberals believe have prospered too much in America.