The crowd running for the GOP’s lieutenant governor nomination in 2013 may get its fourth entrant sometime soon in the person of former state Sen. Jeannemarie Devolites Davis. We can only wonder if, should she run, Mrs. Davis will invite New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg back out on the stump with her, as she did in 2007.
No matter. On the right, we see some maneuvering already underway, and it comes from Sen. Steve Martin. In his most recent email newsletter, Martin seeks to set down a few markers for the rest of the field. The first is his opposition to Gov. McDonnell’s proposed tolls on I-95, which he calls “a foolish idea” and “a new tax on people in Southside Virginia.”
That’s small beer compared to his other proposal, which has been rolling around Richmond for some time:
I have prepared legislation to repeal the corporate income tax in Virginia. In a Virginia with no corporate income taxes, businesses will open new offices, outlets and plants, and hire more people. That activity will stimulate even more economic growth as money is spent in stores restaurants, dealerships and contractors. Those jobs will want homes in which to rest their heads at night, increasing construction and further economic growth. Virginia is doing well economically as compared to most of the country. Repealing the corporate income tax will launch us further ahead.
Corporate income tax repeal was debated within Bob McDonnell’s 2009 gubernatorial campaign, but was dropped when the issued polled poorly. Part of the reason for the bad numbers? McDonnell wanted the repeal to be revenue neutral, which would have meant a hefty rise in the sales tax.
Nevertheless, a bill on corporate income tax repeal did advance in the 2010 session, only to be allowed to die in the House Appropriations committee…due to a lack of guidance from the Governor’s office.
A corporate tax repeal came up again in this past session, patroned by Del. Ben Cline. It was left hanging in a House subcommittee.
What we’ve learned about the corporate tax repeal, then, is that some of its more enduring opponents are Republicans. Mr. Martin will likely find that out for himself in the 2013 session.
Until then, he’s made an early political statement: “I’m the true anti-tax standard bearer.” How his opponents for the lieutenant governor nomination respond — those declared, those exploring and those waiting in the wings — will be interesting indeed.
