When political leaders find themselves with primary results that are not very good, they start to explain their reasons for their decisions on tax votes.

"With leadership comes responsibility and it also means that you have to do what you think is right regardless of whether or not you think people are going to be mad."

That was what state Rep. Kelly Linville, chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, said. She was a leader in writing the state's budget this year. She did not do well in her district in the primary and is trying to explain why she had to risk upsetting her district.

I think that message got her into trouble with her district voters. Is she responsible to them first? They think so and that is ultimately what matters to voters on Election Day. It seems they don't like increased taxes.

The problem comes when politicians are in leadership and at the top of the decision-making. Then they begin to think about what the entire state or country should be doing rather than their own voting district. It's lonely at the top because those not at the top can vote with their district. But most people think all politicians are out of touch with the voters.

Recently on "Meet the Press," I heard David Gregory hammering GOP leader Sen. Mitch McConnell on whether Congress should continue tax cuts put in place under President Bush.

"Do you support the extension of tax cuts that aren't really tax cuts when they have to be paid by the taxpayers?" Gregory asked.

Gregory must have asked that question five times, with the senator trying to say they were not new taxes on anyone unless they were taken away. Then they would be a tax on business and he said that these new taxes would take away more jobs. McConnell noted that this had been tax policy for 10 years.

I was amazed that Gregory didn't acknowledge that if programs were cut, changing the tax code would not be necessary. Gregory liked the sport of trying to get the senator to squirm, but the senator didn't.

Gregory also showed a clip of Alan Greenspan saying the problem was that the country is paying for its programs with borrowed money. Greenspan included these tax cuts in his comments after being prompted by the reporter. He said this has to stop if we are going to get control of our debt.

In a recession, tax revenues fall. This means someone has to pay more taxes unless programs are cut. That is the main observation. But cutting programs is also a political risk and a situation that the Democratic leaders in the state and Congress do not want to do.

Sen. Patty Murray also likes to keep these taxes coming to pay for programs. She is staying on traditional themes in her campaign for Congress. When running for office you will hear, "This shortfall funding was absolutely critical to make sure we didn't go into double-dip recession."

That was Murray talking about her recent vote for Medicaid and education funding for Washington. Murray is repeatedly talking in her political commercials about bringing home the bacon, adding it will protect jobs.

But who is paying for this? Isn't it the taxpayers who have been trying to say they don't want more taxes?

Murray didn't do as well as she should have in the primary and while she keeps telling taxpayers she is bringing home the bacon, they know it means they have to pay more taxes for that to happen. They don't like it.

So you have a number of political leaders trying to tell the voters why their way of spending our tax dollars is the right way.

The Democrats are saying program money (and new tax dollars to shore up the recessionary coffers) is critical to essential government-run programs and the Republicans are saying that new business taxes will hurt job growth.

What seems to be gaining speed in the primary is the more conservative philosophy that government must get spending under control.

The primary election results are proving to be an indication that Washington voters want less spending. Traditional messages that you are doing what is best for the state or country are just not playing well when voters are worried about continuing to spend lots of money during the recession.

The recession has slogged on for two years now and there is no sign that the elected officials really know how to get the country out of it. And it is unlikely that the Republicans can get the Democrats to agree on program cuts during this recession. This means tax increases will be on the horizon.

Pollsters right now say the 2011 and 2012 elections will trend even more toward the Republicans who are known to be more fiscally conservative and have the identity of being the business engine that creates increased taxable wealth and new jobs.



Jan Teague is president/CEO of the Washington Retail Association. Reach her at jteague@retail

association.org.