A tale of two tax cuts, a wage squeeze, and a tax credit

Major developments in tax policy seem less affected by public preferences than by the ideological convictions of partisan elites. The Bush administration's massive tax cuts attracted broad but quite superficial and seemingly confused public support. The estate tax flourished for decades despite considerable public antipathy, but was phased out within five months after Republicans captured the presidency and Congress in 2001. Meanwhile, the public has strongly and consistently favored increases in the minimum wage, but its real value has declined by 40 percent since 1968, while the Earned Income Tax Credit, which has much more tenuous public support, has expanded dramatically.