Flattening the Tax Code: A Plan for Fiscal Fairness and Freedom

April 15 is anathema to most Americans. This date is the Internal Revenue Service filing deadline for income taxes. The tax code, inaugurated in 1913, has been at the forefront of American politics since its inception. Something about the income tax is un-American. Maybe it’s the purported unfairness of it, professed by economic conservatives; maybe it’s the deep hole it leaves in our pockets—the common sense of injustice uniting our individual antipathy; or maybe it’s the feeling of qualified freedom it arises, redistributing hard-earned private property and reminding us that liberty has its price, the price of democracy, the price of government patronage. There is no doubt that taxation is a highly contentious issue.

It is often the litmus test that wins and loses the Presidency. Because the Republican Party is dedicated to limiting the role of big government, it often curries favor with those in opposition to our current progressive income tax structure. For example, President Bush won popularity off a tax-cut stance in 2000. And during his first term we’ve seen those tax cuts he promised. He’s championing to do the same if he wins this November.

But maybe this time he should try reform of a different sort, proposing a flat tax as the center of his 2004 reelection bid. Polls continue to fluctuate and political forecasters inform us that it will be an exceptionally dose election. A war in Iraq coupled with what many feel is questionable domestic policy-highlighted by amnesty to illegal immigrants, among other things-have left this year’s presidential election much closer than thought months ago. Conservatives must find a solution to expand this small margin.

The flat tax could be it. Despite current sentiment, the flat tax shouldn’t be an ideological issue, it can benefit us all. It could fortify Bush’s reelection bid and renew many of the tenets upon which traditional conservatism rests - principles that have been surrendered to our age of accommodation. Indeed, the flat tax could remedy the shortcomings of Bush’s first term. This bold move could galvanize the electorate - gaining votes from conservative Democrats and reassuring conservatives within the Republican Party.

Ironically, Iraq is living the economic consetVative’s dream. On September 15 of last year, the u.s. administrator in Baghdad, L. Paul Bremer, signed into legislation a flat-tax system effective January 1, 2004. The flat tax appeals to conservatives for its simplicity, efficiency and fairness. But the virtues of the flat tax are not recognized only among those on the Right, Russia and the former Soviet Bloc countries of Ukraine, Latvia and Estonia, not to mention a robust Hong Kong, all boast a flat tax. libertarian presidential candidate Harry Browne even attributed his campaign success in 1996 to the momentum gained from promoting the flat tax in his platform. The flat tax transcends partisan bounds. And careful analysis will be instructive to all parties.