Voinovich challenges Bush over tax cuts

WASHINGTON – Ohio Sen. George Voinovich, a rare Republican holdout against President Bush’s tax cut proposal, earned a reputation as a tightwad during his years as Ohio governor.

He shined his own shoes, bought his clothes on sale, and when he learned public money was used to buy snacks served on state airplanes, he banned the snacks. He also sold one of the state’s airplanes.

“He would send me some four-color glossy brochure some state agency did and say, ‘What’s this for? Put it on a piece of white paper and shoot it through the printer,”‘ said Greg Browning, who was Voinovich’s budget director as governor.

As President Bush prepares to visit Ohio Thursday to promote his plan for $550 billion in tax cuts, Voinovich faces a new test. One aim of the trip is to put pressure on Voinovich to change his stance – similar to a trip Bush made in Ohio in 2001, after which Voinovich came out in support of the president’s $1.6 trillion tax cut proposal. Voinovich spokesman Scott Milburn said the 2001 decision was different. At the time, the country had a budget surplus. This time, Voinovich has refused to support tax reductions of more than $350 billion unless they are offset by spending cuts.

“He has been consistent from the beginning and it’s not going to change,” Milburn said.

Back when Voinovich was governor, says Browning, his former budget director, “I remember sitting with piles of spreadsheets. … He wanted to know the ins and outs of everything: What are we doing and what are we buying, and if we spend more money, what will we get for it?”

The son of a Democratic activist in Cleveland, Voinovich, 66, got into politics early. Five years after earning his law degree from Ohio State University, he was elected at age 30 to the Ohio House, as a Republican.

When he was elected mayor of Cleveland in 1979, the city had defaulted on its loans and was in fiscal ruin. Voinovich raised taxes and balanced the books. He ran for governor in 1990, saying he would bring the same fiscal discipline to the state budget.

As governor, he cut $720 million from the budget in two years.

Since his election to the U.S. Senate in 1998, Voinovich hasn’t changed. He and his wife, Janet, sill live in the same working-class neighborhood where they raised four children. In Congress, Voinovich has continued government penny-pinching, backing legislation for a new round of military base closures and opposing the repeal of the estate tax.

He has been in line with the White House and GOP leaders on other issues: He voted for Bush’s first tax cut in 2001, backed management changes to help government hiring when baby boomers start to retire and is sponsoring the president’s air pollution proposal. But even a visit to the White House and a personal pitch from the president hasn’t changed Voinovich’s mind about the latest proposed tax cuts.

Voinovich and Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, refused to support tax reductions of more than $350 billion. Together with Republican Sens. Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island and John McCain of Arizona, who oppose tax cuts of any size, they have helped the Democrats block Bush from getting his full tax package.

“Sometimes people misjudge how to work with George. He does not react to threats and bullying and he does not have another agenda,” said Ohio Republican Rep. Dave Hobson, who has been close friends with Voinovich for years. The Club for Growth, a conservative, tax-cut advocacy group, started airing ads in Columbus, Ohio, that criticize Voinovich for his tax-cut stance.

Despite the ad and White House pressure, political analysts say Voinovich’s stand isn’t likely to hurt him politically.

“He has always been a person who espoused fiscal integrity, so this is nothing new,” said Herb Asher, an Ohio State University political science professor.