Posted on 10/17/2007 1:02:05 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
WASHINGTON - Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani ruled out a tax increase Wednesday to help shore up Social Security, a slight shift in position designed to reassure anti-tax conservatives.
The former New York mayor also said the best remedy for the current housing slump would be for Congress to make President Bush's tax cuts permanent, adding that would "do much much more for the economy than a tailored bailout."
In an appearance before the Club for Growth, he said that as mayor of New York, he had cut spending by more than "any contemporary of mine in the 1990s" in government, a category that presumably included former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, a presidential rival.
Giuliani leads his Republican rivals in national opinion polls, and was one of three contenders on the agenda for the Club for Growth meeting. Former Sen. Fred Thompson and Romney were the others — the former governor by remote hookup.
Like other contenders for the White House, Giuliani has yet to outline a detailed proposal for overhauling Social Security, the giant government retirement system that faces a financial crisis as the Baby Boom generation ages and begins to draw benefits.
In an interview last month with The Associated Press, Giuliani refused to rule out raising taxes to help shore up Social Security.
He said at the time he would assemble a bipartisan group to develop proposals.
"I am opposed to tax increases, but I would look at whatever proposal they came up with and try to figure out how we can come up with a bipartisan way to do it," he said at the time.
The comments led to an exchange of letters between the campaign and the anti-tax group Club for Growth, whose political action committee has intervened forcefully in recent Republican primary elections on behalf of economic conservatives.
Giuliani's campaign sought to reassure the group that the former mayor opposed tax increases.
"In addition to opposing Social Security taxes, we hope Mayor Giuliani will go one very important step further and offer a detailed free-market proposal for reforming Social Security that includes personal savings accounts and returns choice and freedom to individual taxpayers," Pat Toomey, the club's president, responded by letter.
Asked by Toomey at the morning meeting to discuss Social Security, Giuliani quickly responded, "I would rule out a tax increase for that purpose or any purpose."
He said he would create a bipartisan commission to recommend changes, then laid down two elements of any solution. "No tax increase and No. 2, that we come out of it with at least the beginnings of private accounts," he said. He suggested that younger workers be given the ability to create personal Social Security accounts at first.
"I do think Republicans have to be careful not to get too far out in terms of recommendations of Social Security," he said. To do otherwise is to invite a "sucker punch" from Democrats who will claim Republicans want to deny retirees their benefits, he added.
Ironically, while Giuliani and other Republicans all strive to be seen as Reagan's political heir, payroll taxes rose as part of the compromise he reached with Democrats in Congress.
The GOP’s best position on social security is simple: “The Dems are in control of Congress. If they pass something that will fix the social security system, then I’ll sign it.”
It’s a safe position to take, because of course, unless the Dems pass a $10 trillion tax increase, or cut benefits by $10 trillion, or some combination of the two, he will never have to sign anything.
I think Rudy has now far exceeded Mitt in any flip flopping.
Heck, I think he’s even surpassed John Kerry! (Hard to do!)
Geesh girl. I waiting for him to up the ante and offer $10,000 to every kid born in the US. Show Shrillary up to be a tightwad.
Bucks for all!
We need to get more candidates. Then we wouldn’t even have to go to work, ever.
The Democrats are never going to cut anyone’s benefits. By saying he would not raise SS taxes to get a fix, Rudy is leaving himself open to the Democrats ginning up all the greedy geezers to vote AGAINST him IMO.
Replace that pic with Rudy's and he'd be all for it! LOL.
Replace that pic with Rudy's and he'd be all for it! LOL.
No doubt. Now that would be a political opportunists “marriage made in heaven”.LOL
Nonsense. The Dems say there is nothing wrong with social security. How can they now conclude that by ruling out a tax increase, he’s effectively opted to cut benefits?
The Democrats do NOT say there is nothing wrong with SS. They claim the program doesn’t need to be overhauled or changed, just another of the usual fixes of kicking the can farther down the road is all it needs. They claim that the fix is going to be higher taxes or benefit cuts, or a combination of both. Since Rudy has effectively ruled out a tax hike to fix the problem, that leaves a benefit cut as his solution. I’m sure the Democrats are already cutting commercials to run to scare seniors if they can get him the Republican nomination.
I remember well another pubbie Presidential hopeful making almost the same promise! It started out like, "Read my lips................".
The Club for Growth sure has them all on their best behavior today. It’s just like it is when the Dummies go to the KOS convention.
If that’s the case, then all of the GOP contenders are toast because they’ve all said they would not increase taxes. I don’t buy it though. It’s only when you actually propose a social security fix that it becomes a problem. Some of the candidates have done that, but not Rudy. There really is no way to fix social security at this late date anyway. The only thing you can do is say that you will work with Congress, but won’t sign a tax increase. It’s up to Congress to fix this problem anyway. The Dems have been the roadblock, so there is no point in the President proposing anything.
Why won’t they just vote for their betters, these cow-pie kicking boot-scooters, then they can go back to handling snakes or making moonshine or whatever it is these yokels do in this midwestern hell-hole . . . where are we again?
The mike’s on? fuggedabout it! Really?
It’s really great to be here, in America’s Heartland!
Why on 9-11, when I was lifting steel beams off . . .
That is a big difference between Hillary and him. Hillary ruled out personal accounts and any privatization.
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