Keep Economics Scores for the Candidates

Are you keeping track of the presidential candidates' economic policies? Or do you view the contest simply as an endgame, waiting to see who wins and who loses?

My friends who regularly watch sporting events tell me there's more to a game than just the final score. Some who follow baseball keep detailed statistics. Others who are football fans know the quarterback ratings.

In other words, serious fans have real information for making judgments and deciding where to place their bets.

So maybe we should create an economic scorecard for the presidential election and monitor the candidates' policies, promises and performance. These aren't the only issues on which you'll base your vote, but they are likely to have a real impact on your future.

With that, let's take a look at three key categories. (Your contributions and comments are welcome at my blog.)

Taxes

Right now, it's hard to figure out who will be affected by higher taxes and who will get a tax cut based on the rhetoric from the candidates.

Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, the Democrat, promises a middle-class tax cut, but he doesn't define "middle class." In some policy speeches, it appears the cuts will go to individuals earning less than $200,000 or couples earning under $250,000. Obama hasn't specifically explained where he'll raise taxes, though presumably the wealthy and corporate America would be in this category.

As for Sen. John McCain, the Arizona Republican, his acceptance speech included the promise that he will "keep taxes low, and cut where I can." That implies making permanent President Bush's 2002 and 2003 tax reductions, such as the estate taxes and other cuts that were scheduled to "sunset" in 2011.