Undead Tax Cutters Washington Post Editorial

In a time of terrorism and fiscal challenge, Congress has some strange priorities.

LIKE THE GHOUL in the horror movie that refuses to die, estate tax repeal has returned from the grave to stalk the halls of Congress. Just two weeks after abolitionists failed in the Senate, they have regrouped behind a new bill that would achieve most of what they want — not quite the elimination of the tax but its “reform” into insignificance. …

To succeed this time around, the abolitionists have included unrelated tax breaks for timber interests as a bribe for the two wavering Democratic senators from Washington state, Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray. …

The nation faces the expensive retirement of the baby boomers. It is grappling with rising inequality. Its prized social mobility may ultimately be threatened if the richest members of society are allowed to pass unlimited riches to their children. Given these circumstances, the zeal of the Republican leadership for eviscerating the estate tax is mystifying. We trust that the two Washington state senators, along with other wavering Democrats such as Sen. Mark Pryor of Arkansas, won’t be the enablers of this error.