MARINA DEL REY, CALIF.--The current debate about Bush's tax cut isn't actually about taxes. It's about whether or not we apply moral principles to the actions of government, said Robert W. Tracinski, a fellow at the Ayn Rand Institute and a columnist for Creators Syndicate.
"Those who oppose the Bush plan say that the rich ought to pay more taxes because 'they can afford it.' But just because they can afford it doesn't make it right. Just because someone has more money than you doesn't mean you have a right to steal some of it," said Tracinski. "Call this the Willy Sutton Theory of Government. Sutton was the 1930s bank robber who told reporters he robbed banks because 'That's where the money is.' Many people, on both the left and the right, take the same attitude toward taxes: it's fine to soak the rich because that's where the money is."
Tracinski said that the theory that makes otherwise respectable people turn into modern-day Willy Suttons is the theory of the "public good."
"According to this theory, the 'public good' is the only standard in all political matters. All other considerations, such as individual rights, especially property rights, are dispensable," said Tracinski. "Since there is no entity labeled 'the public'--since a society is made up of various individuals, each with his own particular interests--it is impossible to define exactly who counts as 'the public.' Are the wealthy part of the 'public,' or are they mere 'special interests' who can be sacrificed? How about labor unions, or drug manufacturers, or contingency-fee lawyers, or the Microsoft Corporation, or its competitors? Which of these are 'the public'--and which should be its victims?
"In practice, this theory is just a high-brow version of Willy-Sutton-ism. All it means is that if someone has money and someone else can argue that 'the public' needs it--then anything goes. It is the triumph of political amoralism. To safeguard all our rights, including our right to keep what we earn--we have to restrain government by strict moral principles."
Ayn Rand Institute fellow and Creators Syndicate columnist Robert W. Tracinski is available for interviews.
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