Some 80 percent of Americans define themselves as middle class. Though that self-assessment is most likely grossly inaccurate, it is telling. The fact that more than three-quarters of Americans perceive themselves as sitting on the economic median should have politicians waving the middle class banner more often than they do.

Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, offered a definition of middle class on the floor of the House during a debate on the Bush tax cuts, which primarily favored the wealthy: “Will you benefit from these new tax breaks today? Well, take this quiz: Do you play Yahtzee or maintain a fleet of yachts? Do you wear a hard hat or a silk top hat? Do you drive a pickup or own a gallery of Picassos? Do you pump gas by the gallon or sell it by the barrel?”

Hard times often cause class, and sometimes race warfare, and the current downturn is sparking a return to those patterns. Working families who own their homes now struggle to pay for heating fuel and gas for their vehicles, which in turn puts the mortgage payment nearly out of reach. When they see their poorer neighbors using food stamps at the grocery store, middle-class folks wonder what their government is doing for them.

Maine’s 1st District Rep. Tom Allen, who is campaigning to unseat Sen. Susan Collins in the fall election, has offered the middle class a helping hand with HR 2902, the Middle Class Opportunity Act.

The bill would double the tax credit for a child for the first year it is claimed, from $1,000 to $2,000. A key component is who is ineligible for the tax break: incomes of $110,000 for joint filers would be the point at which the credit would be phased-out. It also would expand dependent care credit, raising the top income cut off from $48,000 to $75,000. The tax credit would be available for up to 35 percent of qualified dependent expenses, but phase out for joint incomes of $140,000.

Rep. Allen’s bill also combines the three existing education tax incentives – the Hope, Lifetime Learning and college tuition deductions – into one tax credit. It would be available for up to $2,500 per student, with up to three students eligible per household. And lastly, Rep. Allen’s bill would offer relief from the Alternative Minimum Tax, a tax code antique from several decades ago that was created to ensure tax equity but has come to victimize middle-income earners.

Rep. Allen argues his bill, and economic policies that help the middle class, builds a stronger economy. With 80 percent of Americans poised to agree with him, the Middle Class Opportunity Act also offers candidates opportunities to score points with middle-class voters.