Hill And Rick Clash On Taxes

Dems Paint Lazio As Fiscally Irresponsible

(CBS)  The CBS News Political Unit is tracking the latest campaign commercials. Francesca Gessner checks out the latest pair of ads in the New York Senate race.

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The Ads:
New York Republican Senate candidate Rick Lazio and the New York State Democratic Party have unveiled dueling ads attacking Hillary Clinton and Lazio respectively on taxes. Lazio's 15-second ad, entitled Taxes, accuses Clinton of supporting 15 tax hikes and concludes, "You just can't trust her on taxes." Meanwhile, the New York Democratic Party released a 30-second "soft-money" ad entitled Buff. The ad says Lazio's tax plans "don't add up" and neglect upstate New York's economic needs. While Buff is running upstate only, Taxes is running statewide.

Audio: Taxes:
Announcer: "What's Hillary Clinton's record on taxes? Hillary Clinton has supported 15 tax increases, including higher taxes on social security benefits. Hillary Clinton - you just can't trust her on taxes."

Visual: Taxes:
The ad features a photo of Hillary Clinton in a red box next to red banner that reads, "Clinton" and beneath the banner the text, "Record on Taxes." The word "Expensive" then appears, followed by another red box with the text, "Supported 15 Tax Increases, Higher Taxes on Social Security."

Fact Check:
Because Clinton has never held elected office, she did not actually vote on the tax increases in question. Clinton did propose a payroll tax increase as part of her 1993 health care reform plan. But the majority of the 15 tax increases mentioned in the ad were part of a 1993 tax bill signed by President Clinton aimed at reducing the deficit.

Audio: Buff:
Announcer: "The Buffalo News says Rick Lazio's "orbiting another planet" when he says "upstate doesn't need targeted economic help." And experts say Lazio's trillion-dollar tax plan would eat up the surplus, leaving no money to pay off the debt and extend the life of Social Security and Medicare. Hillary has a real plan for upstate New York, including affordable tax cuts to help families pay for college and long-term care, and to help small businesses create jobs right here. Tell Lazio his plans don't add up for upstate New York."

Visual: Buff:
The ad opens with the text, "What planet is Rick Lazio orbiting?" and then a newspaper headline "Problem? What Problem?" with the following text from the newspaper article: "Lazio doesn't think Upstate needs targeted economic help. The Buffalo News 9-10-00." We then see grainy footage of Lazio with the phrases, "Lazio's plan would eat up surplus," and "No money to pay off the federal debt and extend the life of Social Security and Medicare. Source: Fiscal Policy Institute, 9-13-00." The ad shifts to footage of Hillary Clinton interacting with vters, shaking a man's hand with the text, " Hillary: Tax cuts for college and long term care," and "Tax cuts for small businesses to create jobs." We then see a black screen with white print, "Call Lazio, 202-225-3335." The ad concludes with a newspaper headline alone on the screen, "Lazio tax package doesn't add up. New York Daily News 8/26/00."

Fact Check:
Lazio says his tax cut would cost $776 billion over 10 years, but several independent experts and newspapers have put the cost at $1.1 trillion. Clinton favors more limited and targeted tax cuts and she says her proposals would cost around $500 billion over a decade. The ad's charge that Lazio's tax cut would "eat up the surplus" is based on an analysis conducted by the Fiscal Policy Institute, a nonpartisan research organization in New York. However, Lazio insists his plan would reserve 75 percent of the government surplus to protect Social Security.

Strategy:
The prominence of the tax issue in these two ads reflects a strategy on the part of both the Clinton and Lazio camps to nationalize the New York Senate race. Clinton's team is hoping to mirror Vice President Al Gore's success in painting his Republican opponent George W. Bush's tax cut as risky and irresponsible. Meanwhile, Lazio's ad follows the Bush campaign's belief that Americans are eager for a tax cut. Moreover, Lazio is trying to tie Hillary to Bill Clinton on a classic Republican issue: taxes.

While both ads seek to make taxes a key issue in the race, there are other factors at play in the ads. Lazio's ad raises the issue of Hillary's character with what has become his signature refrain: "You just can't trust her." Meanwhile the Democratic Party ad targets upstate New York, a traditionally Republican region that has proved surprisingly receptive to Clinton. Buff tries to make Lazio appear out of touch with upstate concerns - an ironic twist given that Hillary is the "carpetbagger" in the race.

Unlike Taxes which was paid for in by Lazio's campaign, the New York Democratic Party ad was funded by "soft-money."