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All's welfare
MELBOURNE, Fla. -- When Bill Clinton signed a Republican welfare-reform bill in 1995, he did not only "end welfare as we know it" but appeared to kill one of the issues the GOP liked to invoke when caricaturing its opponents as big-city liberals.
In two Florida stops today, John McCain exhumed "welfare," a term Democrats once saw as a wedge issue used in racially-charged appeals to white swing voters, as he criticized the fact that individuals who do not pay taxes would qualify for refundable credits proposed by Barack Obama.
“That’s not a tax cut, that’s welfare," McCain said.
About Political Intelligence
Glen Johnson is Politics Editor at boston.com and lead blogger for "Political Intelligence." He moved to Massachusetts in the fourth grade, and has covered local, state, and national politics for over 25 years. E-mail him at johnson@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @globeglen. |
