Bob Collins picked up on this statement about a college senior in town working as an intern for the Republican National Convention and asked his readers to comment on it.
Ms. Rondeau is used to hard work: She's paying her way through college, something that makes her appreciate the Republican stance on issues such as tax cuts.
The original story in the Dallas Morning News fails to clarify whether the connection between college, working and taxpaying was drawn by the student or the reporter. It's unlikely that a college student paying her own tuition and taking advantage of all her deductions would earn enough to owe more than a few hundred dollars in income taxes. It is possible she is "paying her way" — about $30,000 a year in private college tuition, room and board — without any help from taxpayers. But more likely it's through a combination of funding sources that also include loans, grants and parental help that could be worth tax deductions to someone.
Anyway, good for her. My beef is the subtle anti-tax message stuck in a story where it doesn't belong and a conclusion that is actually off base. If a Republican president should be in office when Jessica Rondeau enters the full-time working world with an entry-level salary, her tax cut might be one-seventh what the Democratic candidate's plan calls for, according to a study of both candidate's tax plans.
UPDATE: King Banaian spent some time answering some of Collins' questions, too.
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