Campbell, Taxes and the 2 Toms

Tom Campbell

Californians are getting two images of Republican Senate hopeful when it comes to taxes.

There’s Terrible Tom, the guy who wants to tax you in the ground.

Or so goes the attack from the American Future Fund, an Iowa-based conservative group that’s spending $1 million for a week’s worth on cable-tv ads denouncing Campbell’s “20-year record of higher taxes and spending”.

That’s the same AFF that went after the Obama Administration and its friends in Congress on health care reform.

The same AFF that may want to get a good lawyer, as the anti-Campbell ad uses the Beatles’ “Tax Man” — a no-no, as far as copyrighted music’s concerned.

For the record, it marks the second time in the Senate primary that  a conservative 501(c)(4) has gone postal — er, video – against Campbell.

The National Organization for Marriage also ran a tv ad last month suggesting Campbell’s no different from Barbara Boxer, given his support of same-sex marriage.

Meanwhile, there Transparent Tom, who handed over his tax returns to the San Jose Mercury News and challenged his rivals to follow his lead.

In case you’re curious, Campbell reported an adjusted-gross income of $443,426 (his wife filed separately, to protect her privacy).

Where did he earn his money? $140,283 came from being a visiting law professor at Chapman University; another $12,022 came from Campbell’s last days at UC-Berkeley’s Haas School of Business.

Campbell also earned $713,105 as a director of the boards of Visa International and FormFactor, a Bay Area semiconductor manufacturer (the candidate resigned from both boards after he decided to run for Senate).

Campbell paid $147,236 in federal taxes and $39,690 in state taxes.

 A potential vulnerability should he win the June primary: he donated only $600 to charity in 2009.

btw, all’s quiet on the western front as far as tax returns go: other than Campbell, no senatorial or gubernatorial candidate has yet to go public with their love notes to the IRS.

2010 Dynamics Lean Republican

Why is this elephant smiling?

Over at Investor’s Business Daily’s Web site, an interesting piece by Raghavan Mayur discussing how the dynamics driving the midterm election generally tilt Republican.

Mayur uses four variables:

1) Economy. Independents give President a thumbs-down on his handling of the economy, job-creation and the federal budget. Mayur adds a sleeper: rising gasoline prices (57% of respondents in a recent IBD poll say gas prices are hurting them.

2) One-Party Rule. The same poll found three-fifths support of the notion that Democratic control of Congress and the presidency hasn’t been good for the country. The feelings toward Congress were especially brutal with only one in eight voters giving the institution an “A” or a “B”.

3) Health Care.  Opponents of health care reform outnumber supporters by only 5% but there’s an intensity gap. Two in give voters say they’re more apt to toss a member of Congress who voted for the landmark bill; only one in four felt the same about member who were anti-Obamacare.

4) Rising Conservative Tide. 57% of respondents described themselves as to the right of Obama.  On a 10-point ideology scale (1 being ”very liberal”; 10 being ”very conservative”), Obama got a rating of 3.7; the rest of the nation gave itself a 6.0.