Politics & Government

Missouri Tax Cut Failure: Who Do You Blame?

Would you have supported the tax cuts? Do you think Nixon's more to blame for vetoing them in the first place, or the GOP lawmakers who broke ranks and didn't vote to override the veto?

In what should have been a veto-proof Missouri Legislature, Gov. Jay Nixon's veto of tax-cut measures in the state held last week — to the surprise of Republican leadership.

The story even made it to the New York Times on Wednesday, as lawmakers failed to override Nixon's veto of measures that would have reduced the top personal income tax rate by one-half of a percentage point, to 5.5 percent. The corporate tax rate would have been reduced by 3 percentage points, to 3.25 percent. In both cases, the reductions would have been phased in over 10 years.

Nixon, a Democrat, had vetoed the reductions, returning the bills to the General Assembly, where Republicans hold a historic super-majority in both chambers. Still, when 15 members of the GOP broke ranks, the veto held.

"It’s a defining moment," the Times quoted Nixon saying at a news conference. "Today was about protecting our economy, our communities and, especially, our schools from this costly and misguided bill."

Conservatives inside and outside the legislative chambers basically went nuts, vowing to do everything they could to defeat the 15 who declined to override the veto, according to a report in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

"We’re going to have to do a better job of recruiting and funding candidates in the future," House Speaker Tim Jones told the Post.

Would you have supported the tax cuts? Do you think Nixon's more to blame for vetoing them in the first place, or the GOP lawmakers who broke ranks and didn't vote to override the veto? Should the tax cut plan have failed? Click the links to read more and add your comments below.


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