June 15, 2011
Yesterday, 34 of 47 Republicans in the U.S. Senate voted to end tax subsidies for ethanol. Totally apart from the merits of the issue, the vote represented a welcome willingness to stand up to Grover Norquist, founder of the group Americans for Tax Reform. Norquist has demanded Republicans sign his pledge never to raise taxes, including the ending of tax subsidies and he has been largely successful in his effort. But, Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma not only demurred from Norquist's position, he convinced a majority of his fellow Republicans to do the same.
Solving the nation's fiscal challenges will take compromise, a word that is not in Mr. Norquist's vocabulary. Kudos to Coburn for challenging this faux-orthodoxy on taxes.
