Since his recent talking point conflating resolution authority with a "bailout" didn't seem to work out so well, Frank Luntz has a new talking point f
April 30, 2010

Since his recent talking point conflating resolution authority with a "bailout" didn't seem to work out so well, Frank Luntz has a new talking point for Republicans which Sean Hannity happily allows him to pass along; Chris Dodd's financial services bill is going to result in a "checkbook tax".

Apparently Arriana Huffington didn't mind allowing him a format to peddle this garbage as well. From his post at the HuffPo Why the Dodd Financial Services Bill Is Bad... For Democrats:

But here's where it gets really interesting. The Democrats supporting the current legislation have assured an anxious electorate that whatever funds are used to create whatever regulatory scheme created will come from the banks, not the taxpayers. Let me emphasize that so that even casual readers will catch it: the Democrats promise that you won't pay for their legislation, banks will.

Really?

Since when have corporations ever paid taxes, fees or penalties? Employees end up paying in the form of lower salaries and benefits. Customers end up paying in the form of higher costs.

And in this case, every account holder will be forced to pay higher fees on their checking account and savings account. That's you, my friendly reader. Can you say "checkbook tax"? I can, and I think lots of candidates will be saying it come November. Is that what you really want to do to your constituents, Senator Lincoln? Is that what you really want to explain on the campaign trail, Senator Bennett?

From the looks of the comments section over there, Luntz's latest script for the Republicans isn't going over so well. We'll see how many of them start repeating it like mindless drones in the next week or so.

Can you help us out?

For nearly 20 years we have been exposing Washington lies and untangling media deceit, but now Facebook is drowning us in an ocean of right wing lies. Please give a one-time or recurring donation, or buy a year's subscription for an ad-free experience. Thank you.

Discussion

We welcome relevant, respectful comments. Any comments that are sexist or in any other way deemed hateful by our staff will be deleted and constitute grounds for a ban from posting on the site. Please refer to our Terms of Service for information on our posting policy.
Mastodon