Tax Debate: Read My Lip Service

Read my lips. Presidential candidates often make tax promises they can't keep.

Democratic challenger Sen. John Kerry has looked directly into television cameras and told a national audience that if elected he would raise income taxes only on Americans making more than $200,000. He's also vowed to implement new tax cuts for 98% of U.S. families, while adding a host of social benefits and reducing the nation's record budget deficit.

President George W. Bush, meanwhile, has pushed to make permanent the major but temporary tax cuts from his first term -- on earnings, dividends and capital gains -- and to eliminate the estate, or inheritance, tax altogether. He has said he would hack away at the deficit as well and explore the idea of a simpler, streamlined tax code. ...