Mr. Obama voted against the Bush tax cuts on capital gains and dividends, justifying his anti-growth stance with the old class-warfare saw about tax cuts for the rich. Of course, these are the very same tax cuts that spurred economic expansion, created record job growth, and reduced the deficit as revenues flooded the Treasury.
The young senator also voted against repealing the death tax. He dismissed it as a "Paris Hilton tax break" that would give "billions of dollars to billionaire heirs and heiresses." Try telling that to the owners of farms, ranches, and small businesses who are forced to sell their legacies because of this tax.
He swings a nice protectionist bat, too. He has voted against free trade (the Central American Free Trade Agreement) and U.S. energy independence (drilling in Arctic Natural Wildlife Refuge) and has opposed lifting a $0.54 per gallon tariff on Brazilian ethanol. "Ethanol imports are neither necessary nor a practical response to current gasoline prices," he claimed. Nonsense.
He also strongly opposes personal retirement accounts for Social Security reform, and prefers instead that the government stewards your money. As Amanda Carpenter wrote in Human Events, "When speaking out against various tax cuts, Mr. Obama has likened the 'Ownership Society' -- which entails such things as personalized Social Security accounts, health savings accounts and school choice -- to 'social Darwinism.' "