Democrats are only helping GOP’s McCain

The toll of the ongoing Democratic presidential campaign is growing more evident, not just in national polls but among local voters as well.

The 21st (yes, 21st) Democratic debate last Wednesday did little to inspire the so-called swing voters to opt for the blue side of the aisle. An AP-Yahoo poll suggests moderate Republicans and even some Democrats now have a more favorable view of expected GOP nominee John McCain than either of the Democrats.

And despite huge gains in Democratic voter registration, the national trend doesn't appear to be out of step here.

For starters it's a little hard to accept anything Hillary Clinton says after admitting her recent fabrications about a trip to Bosnia when she was first lady were "not accurate."

It's almost as if she's gone back to her pre-shot drinking, emotionless cyborg routine. How can she remember events vividly enough to write accurately about them and then not stick to the story on the stump?

It's easy. In an era in which memoirs are falsified and voters have attention spans that rival a fly's life span, Clinton figured nobody would care if her stories didn't match.

And if they did, so what? Her campaign supporters could argue that people are calling her on her lie only because she's a woman.

Whether it's a vast right-wing conspiracy or her trip to Bosnia, voters don't trust her. So Clinton's campaign is doing everything possible to raise trust issues with Barack Obama.

The ABC News debate last week, held at Philadelphia's Constitution Hall and prefaced with snippets of the Constitution, never lived up to its lofty expectations.

It would have been amazing to see a real debate on constitutional issues, most notably centering on the First or Second amendments. Instead we got the equivalent of a debate about the flag-burning amendment.

When Obama was asked, for the umpteenth time this cycle, why he doesn't wear the American flag pin, my mind turned to "Animal House." "Is that a pledge pin on your uniform?"

Amid the lofty discussion of Obama's implied lack of patriotism, Republican and independent voters were treated again to the Rev. Jeremiah Wright's statements and Obama's "connections" to the Weather Underground terrorist William Ayers.

He defended himself well enough by pointing out the more egregious connection -- Clinton's husband's pardoning of two members of the group.

Just imagine how that's going to play this fall. Democrats aren't just going to raise your taxes, they're friendly with terrorists.

Speaking of taxes, this election will be all about the economy, all the time.

And what independent voters in Nevada heard Wednesday -- if they weren't watching the real race for the country's soul, "American Idol," -- is that both Democrats will raise taxes.

Each said they planned to get rid of tax cuts on the wealthiest Americans. Obama has put that label on those earning $200,000 or more and Clinton has it at $250,000 or more.

Locally, Democrat Robert Daskas -- challenging Rep. Jon Porter in Nevada's 3rd Congressional District -- is taking a similar tack. Last week he presented a plan that includes tax breaks targeted to the middle class, including increased child care and college tuition breaks, to be paid for by rolling back the Bush tax cuts on roughly 6 percent of voters.

Even though the vast majority of Americans would see decreased taxes under Clinton or Obama or a Congress that includes Daskas, they won't be able to get over the simple fact that taxes are going to go up on someone.

Obama and Clinton have also now each said they would consider raising the tax rate on capital gains. Bill Clinton lowered the rate to 20 percent and Bush dropped it down to 15 percent. Obama has suggested the pre-Clinton rate of 28 percent might make sense and Clinton said Wednesday that "if I raise it at all" it wouldn't be higher than the 20 percent rate her husband set.

When independent voters hear the fact-challenged Clinton say "if I raise it at all," they immediately think she's going to raise taxes through the roof.

Obama is actually a rare candidate who talks about reforming Social Security. But he says part of the fix is raising the salary cap at which the tax is phased out for workers.

In case you're counting, that's three tax increases for Obama and one, maybe two, from Clinton.

McCain, on the other hand, unveiled his own tax break proposal last week - a summer hiatus from federal gas taxes.

The problem for Democrats is that McCain can morph to the middle with populist tax breaks, but Democrats can't get to the same middle when they're raising taxes, even if their breaks are more substantive and beneficial to more Americans.

Of course there's plenty more time for this election to play out. The Democrats have been at it for only 15 months now.

But assuming Democratic voters did "fall in love" with one of the candidates, some are already ready to file for divorce. And the new suitor, however old, comes with his tax breaks and fiscal responsibility.

The longer the Democrats talk to each other, the more swing voters think McCain appears to be the safer bet.

Contact Erin Neff at (702) 387-2906, or by e-mail at eneff@reviewjournal.com.