Posted: October 9, 2007 6:40 PM
Giuliani, Romney Duke it Out Over Taxes in Michigan
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Republican front-runners former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney brought a brewing tete-a-tete over taxes to the national stage Tuesday in CNBC’s economic debate in Dearborn,  Mich. The two rivals argued over Giuliani’s opposition to a line item veto, which he believes is unconstitutional. Romney, however, has said on the campaign trail and again in the debate that it helps cut pork and wasteful spending.
“I love the line item veto. I exercised it 844 times,” Romney said referring to his time as Massachusetts governor. He also continued attacks on Giuliani for his decision in 1999 while New York City mayor to sue the state of New York to keep the commuter tax.
And both tried to best the other on a record of cutting taxes. Giuliani said that he cut taxes 23 times as mayor of New York City, a detail he provides when given the opportunity. Giuliani said Romney let taxes increase 11 percent in Massachusetts, to which Romney responded: “It’s baloney. Mayor, you’ve got to check your facts. I did not increase taxes in Massachusetts. I lowered taxes.” After rounds of back and forth between the two, former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson tried to comment, but his microphone wasn’t turned all the way on and his response was lost. The Michigan debate is Thompson’s first debate showing.
Even before the Michigan showdown, Giuliani and Romney were sparring over fiscal conservative voters in New Hampshire, a state with no income tax and a primary date early in the calendar.
Coming off the news that Giuliani surpassed Romney in 3rd quarter fundraising and made gains in New Hampshire polling, the campaign launched a full court press on the Granite State with two full days of public events in eight cities that launched attacks over the line item veto and the commuter tax.
At the same time, Romney emphasized his own pledge to lower taxes and his support of the line item veto. Campaign spokesman Kevin Madden said “Governor Romney strongly disagrees with Mayor Giuliani on those issues, since the line-item veto helps reduce wasteful spending and families ought to be protected from higher tax burdens, instead of having their mayor file lawsuits in court in an effort to keep them.”
Giuliani released a radio ad in New Hampshire on Wednesday called Tested focusing on terrorism and the economy. Romney released his own rebuttal radio ad called ‘Tax Pledge’ on Friday pledging not to raise taxes and released what his campaign called a conservative blueprint to lower taxes.
The two also met on stage last Friday at the Americans for Prosperity Foundation’s Defending the American Dream conference in Washington, D.C. where Romney touched on what his campaign calls a ‘conservative blueprint to lower taxes.’
Giuliani’s campaign released a statement from Steve Forbes: “Results speak louder than rhetoric - that’s why Rudy Giuliani’s record of cutting taxes and slashing government spending makes him the true fiscal conservative in the race.” Before Tuesday’s debate, he wrote an op-ed in the Grand Rapids Press about fiscal discipline in Michigan.
In Iowa, Romney maintains his lead in a recent Des Moines Register poll, but Thompson is catching up and Giuliani is fighting with former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee for third. But Huckabee and Thompson supporters in Iowa will need to come up with their own Halloween pumpkin carving templates, because the Register only includes Romney, Giuliani and Arizona Sen. John McCain in its candidates templates for Halloween
-- By , NewsHour with Jim Lehrer | Comments | Link
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I listened to the story about the Republican debate in Michigan. Not one Republican mentioned the war as a possible reason for the record stock market gains. It's a well known fact that wars inflate the economy. The next president is almost sure to experience a recession as the war winds down. That president will probably even take the blame for the recession when it's really Bush who did nothing except artificially prop up the economy knowing full well that the bulk of the american people will say nothing as long as their precious stocks and mutual funds are doing ok. Thanks for this opportunity.