Romney: Robin Hood -- in reverse

“Mitt Romney’s tax plan would provide large tax cuts to wealthy Americans and hike taxes on middle- and low-income households, according to an analysis by The Brookings Institution,” the Boston Globe writes of the study conducted by the Tax Policy Center a joint project of Brookings and the Urban Institute. “The report published Wednesday estimated households with incomes over $1 million would receive average tax cuts of $87,117 under Romney’s plan, while those earning $200,000 or less would pay higher taxes. … The Romney campaign dismissed the report as a ‘liberal’ study.”

USA Today: “Obama cites study co-written by ex-Obama, ex-Bush aides.”More: “The analysis was conducted by three Brookings economists, including William G. Gale, an economic adviser to President George H. W. Bush, and Adam Looney, who served in Obama’s Council of Economic Advisers.”

The Washington Post: “The study was conducted by researchers at the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center, a joint project of the Brookings Institution and the Urban Institute, who seem to bend over backward to be fair to the Republican presidential candidate. To cover the cost of his plan — which would reduce tax rates by 20 percent, repeal the estate tax and eliminate taxes on investment income for middle-class taxpayers — the researchers assume that Romney would go after breaks for the richest taxpayers first.”

It’s a group the Romney campaign has cited. Talking Points Memo: “[T]he Obama campaign notes that Romney aides took a very different view of the group when they put out a similar analysis of Rick Perry’s tax plan during the Republican primaries. Here’s how a Romney press release in November described their work: Objective, Third-Party Analysis Showed Governor Perry’s Plan Would Raise Taxes On Millions Of American Families – But He Doesn’t Seem Interested In The Discussion.”

Here’s a headline: New York Daily News: “Chick-fil-A draws support from neo-Nazis and a prominent black conservative group, and Mike Huckabee’s got the company’s back, too.”

“Mitt Romney’s horse likely won’t bring home the gold in Olympic dressage — and may not be a winner on the campaign trail either,” the New York Daily News writes. “Rafalca, a 15-year-old mare valued at as much $500,000, will compete in London Thursday with Ann Romney, the candidate’s wife, cheering from the stands. But political pros say the the image — despite flourish of feel-good Olympic patriotism — is likely a loser for Romney. Dressage, known as ‘horse ballet,’ is considered a sport of the elite — a label Romney is trying to shed.”

Marketplace from American Public Media radio yesterday broke down the costs of dressage:

- Horse: $60,000 to $100,000
- Formal coat called a shadbelly: $879
- Top hat: $400
- Britches: $379
- Gloves: $62
- Silk tie: $100
- Custom boots: starting at $1,000
- Saddle: Over $12,000