Pat Quinn back when he knew something about Taxes

Quinn's Press Release back in 2003: QUINN LAUNCHES DRIVE TO SLASH PROPERTY TAXES, INCREASE SCHOOL FUNDING, JUMP-START ECONOMY

“The Taxpayer Action Amendment is a fair and simple method to deliver substantial property tax relief permanently to more than 2.7 million Illinois homeowners,” Quinn said. “We need to restore fundamental fairness to the Illinois tax code and deliver guaranteed property tax relief to the people who need it most – the hard-working, bill-paying taxpayers of Illinois.”

And noting Illinois’ current unemployment rate is up to 7.1 percent, Quinn argued the best way to jumpstart the economy and grow jobs is to put money in the pockets of consumers.

If approved by 60% of the voters in the November 2, 2004 election, the Taxpayer Action Amendment would amend the Education Article of the Illinois Constitution to impose a 3 percent surtax on the adjusted gross income of individuals reporting in excess of one-quarter million dollars ($250,000) a year.

Progress Illinois channeling the Daily Herald's John Patterson look at Quinn's past on taxes,

Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn, who would become governor if Blagojevich is ousted, has shown support for tax increases, backing a constitutional amendment in 2004 that would have doubled the state income tax for those making more than $250,000 in order to raise more than a billion dollars for schools and property tax breaks. That plan has not been successful.

As SEIU's Progress Illinois notes: If history is any lesson, some much needed tax reform may be on the horizon. And I think to say that reform includes a tax hike unless Quinn is going to enlighten us otherwise.

Chuck Sweeny from RRStart got this out of Quinn a few weeks ago,

Would Quinn as governor seek to raise revenue to right the state’s fiscal ship? He said he’d propose a commission to examine tax breaks and “propose a moratorium on special breaks until we get out of this economic problem.” But which loopholes? One man’s loophole is another’s job-creating tax incentive.

One excessive loophole, Quinn said, is the 1.75 percent commission paid to retailers on sales taxes they collect for the state.

“Back in 1930s, when this was enacted, they gave retailers the 1.75 percent because they had to calculate everything with pencil and paper. Now we have computers. The real cost of collection is far less than the commission,” he said. The collection bonus to retailers costs the state $200 million a year.

“If you cut it in half, you pick up $100 million. This is money the customer is already paying,” Quinn said.

Would Quinn propose an income tax increase, even a temporary one, to get the state’s books in order?

“I don’t want to make any judgments on income tax. Part of it is the whole issue of getting access to the real numbers from the governor’s office. (Blagojevich) has not always been totally candid, and I’m a little bit reluctant to make judgments until I see real numbers that are not phony baloney.”

So Quinn who's up on the costs of loop holes has to waffle on the cost of an income tax?

What have Hynes, Giannoulis, and Quinn been doing all these years that they can't tell votes to counter Blagojevich's demagoguery?

The Guv's played the race cards, and now's playing the tax cards and these Democrats can't fight back with a little plain truth to Illinois voters about the impact?

Blagojevich has kept these guys in the dark about Illinois's finances down on that great mushroom farm in Springfield?

Tell me it ain't so. The first step towards reform is Politican with courage to speak simply and truthfully without hedging hard truths.