United Liberty

With just under two weeks left until Wisconsin Republican head to the polls to decide the nomination for United States Senate, it appears that Eric Hovde may have proven conservative groups, like the Club for Growth, right for targeting him on taxes. Yesterday, Americans for Tax Reform hit Hovde, who has not signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge, for his willingness to accept a “grand bargin” on the budget:

According to Politifact, Hovde “has told voters that he would accept a budget-balancing deal that gets $10 in spending cuts for every $1 in new revenue.”

Hovde’s admission leaves voters wondering if he understands the basic premise of a budget “compromise.” Perhaps Eric Hovde is not aware that budget compromises between Republicans and Democrats do not work. He should examine the 1982 and 1990 budget “compromises.”

In 1982, President Reagan was promised three dollars in spending cuts for every one dollar in tax increases. Whether Hovde remembers this or not, Congressional Democrats never delivered on their promise to cut spending.
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“Eric Hovde’s willingness to negotiate with Democrats like Harry Reid on tax hike ‘compromises’ further proves that he is not the conservative leader he claims to be,” said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform. “If thirty years of so-called ‘compromises’ have taught American taxpayers anything it is that at the end of the day, they are stuck paying more taxes with no realized spending cuts. It is a shame Eric Hovde is leaving tax hikes on the table.”

Former Gov. Tommy Thompson has Newt Gingrich, who frequently backs big-government candidates, campaigning for him and is hoping that the conservative vote splits enough for him to pick up the nomination. Erick Erickson of Red State, who long ago noted his oppostion to Thompson, has come out for former Rep. Mark Neumann, who has been surging in polls as of late. Erickson also took Hovde to task:

As this campaign enters its final week, there is no more need for clarity on Eric Hovde. He, like the other candidates, has a record and it is one conservatives should reject in favor of Mark Neumann’s conservative record.

Hovde is a donor to Democratic politicos. He gave money to Jim Doyle, the former liberal Wisconsin governor. He gave money to a left-wing activist turned legislator in the Pennsylvania State House.

Hovde’s business took in stimulus funds from Washington. Hovde advocated for stimulus funds for high speed rail and green energy subsidies. He even said one of the benefits of green energy subsidies would be to combat “global warming.”

Hovde has denied taking TARP money, but his company urged investors to profit off a shift in U.S. tax law. Ironic given he advocates for closing corporate loopholes.

While Hovde says he opposed how TARP was structured, that’s just nuanced bull shiitake mushrooms. Hovde is perfectly comfortable with taxpayer funded bailouts. He just would have done TARP differently. It’s like getting someone pregnant, just not via the missionary position.

It gets worse. Eric Hovde is a person who played Washington to improve his fortunes.
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And that is where Eric Hovde is wrong. He shows no willingness to fix the world from which he profited. We don’t need more of the same in Washington, DC and Hovde would be just another pretty face content in the status quo.

The most recent poll in the race shows Hovde leading both Neumann and Thompson by three points; however, that’s inside the margin of error; essentially meaning that there is a three-way tie. But again, the momentum at the moment, despite Hovde’s lead, is with Neumann, who saw his support grow by 10 points in less than a month. And with some conservatives beginning to rally around him and Hovde’s questionable past, Neumann may well pull out a win on August 14th.