[CA] Rail project could knock tax vote off track

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | July 5, 2012 | John Wildermuth

[Cincinatus' Wife]

A wide range of California voters are willing to give Gov. Jerry Brown's tax initiative the support it needs in November, but that could change in a hurry if the Legislature approves billions of dollars for the proposed high-speed rail project later this week, a new Field Poll shows.

More than a fifth of those voters backing Brown's tax plan, which would temporarily boost the sales tax by one-quarter of one cent and increase state income tax for those making more than $250,000 a year, say they would be less likely to support it if the state starts spending money on high-speed rail.

[who_would_fardels_bear]

This would have been a good issue to organize around. I know most Republicans are against both the train and the tax increase.

But we could have pulled a page from the Democrat playbook: said we would vote for the tax if only they cancelled the train. Later our views would "evolve" and we would decide against voting for the tax even if the train went off the tracks.

[Mouton]

“which would temporarily boost the sales tax by one-quarter of one cent” temporarily because it will go higher as needed.