BY SANDY THEIS
Enquirer Columbus Bureau
COLUMBUS -- Scott Pullins, a conservative who heads the Ohio chapter of the National Taxpayers Union, is a new admirer of Lee Fisher, the Democratic candidate for governor.
Mr. Fisher's plan to cut property taxes by $1.1 billion "is a plan I could have written myself," Mr. Pullins said Wednesday. "It's a very bold plan, especially for someone who has been portrayed as a liberal Democrat."
Across Ohio, other conservatives responded in similar fashion, while groups and organizations that traditionally support Democrats had harsh words for Mr. Fisher.
"I don't see how he expects to win an election by being more Republican than the Republican candidate," said Tom Mooney, president of the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers, a union that has endorsed Mr. Fisher over GOP nominee Bob Taft. "People who want a Republican will vote for the real thing, not an imitation."
A Democratic political analyst says Mr. Fisher's tax cut plan is masterful, especially for someone who trails in public opinion polls.
"Before this, there was very little difference between Bob Taft and Lee Fisher in the eyes of the average voter," lobbyist Paul Tipps said. "Today there is a difference, and campaigns are about differences."
Under Mr. Fisher's plan, the state would pick up an extra 15 percentage points of a homeowner's property tax bill, up to $275 annually. The state already pays 12.5 percent of the property tax on owner-occupied housing, and Mr. Fisher estimates the additional tax break would cost the state $550 million during the first year of his budget and $580 million the second.
Mr. Taft termed the idea "irresponsible," and warned of deep cuts to higher education and services for elderly peopleif the plan is adopted.
But by calling for tax cuts, Mr. Fisher is putting pressure on Mr. Taft to do the same.
On Wednesday, Mr. Taft called for a property tax cut for senior citizens, an announcement that had been planned even before Mr. Fisher's surprise announcement Tuesday.
While some Taft advisers have been privately urging the campaign to call for bigger tax cuts -- or at least match Mr. Fisher's -- campaign spokesman Brett Buerck said no proposals for broad-based tax cuts will occur.
"We're going to offer sensible, responsible, targeted tax relief to those who need it the most," he said, "because that's what leadership is all about."
To the National Taxpayers Union's Mr. Pullins, such comments sound like the mutterings of liberals or Republican Gov. George Voinovich.
"In the 3 1/2 years I've been here, I don't fight with Democrats," Mr. Pullins said. "All I do is fight with the Republican governor and Republican (legislative) leaders. They are out of step with the grass roots in the country and they better wake up."
He noted that George W. Bush, the Republican governor of Texas, recently signed into law a property tax cut for homeowners similar to the one offered by Mr. Fisher.
"This is something that conservative Republicans around the country are doing, except in Ohio," he said.
Tom Roepke, a GOP activist and fund raiser for the Ashbrook Center, also noted the tax-cut trend among Republicans -- except in Ohio's race for governor.
"When I picked up the paper this morning, I said, "What a brilliant idea,' " Mr. Roepke said. "Why is a liberal Democrat making it?" Despite the support that Mr. Fisher's plan is receiving, Mr. Buerck said the Taft campaign is about to fight back.
"It's safe to say that the people of Ohio will be told about Lee Fisher's record as a tax-and-spend liberal," he said.
Research by the Taft campaign has revealed 28 instances where Mr. Fisher has raised taxes, he said. He hinted that the list, which he said is growing, is destined for a campaign commercial soon. Mr. Fisher "doesn't have credibility on this issue," Mr. Buerck said. "Look at his record."
Fisher supporters responded with an old news clipping that showed Hamilton County's property taxes went up 46 percent during the time Mr. Taft served as a Hamilton County commissioner. They don't mention that Mr. Taft didn't vote to raise the taxes; he merely voted to place the tax hikes before voters.
By co-opting ideas commonly espoused by the opposing party, Mr. Fisher is taking a page from President Clinton's political manual.
Mr. Clinton, who called himself a New Democrat, seized on traditionally Republican platforms, such as reforming welfare and balancing the budget.
The new challenge for the Fisher campaign is to convince voters he is serious about the tax cuts, while not alienating Mr. Mooney and other traditional Democrats fearful that the tax cuts will short-change education and welfare.
Prior to announcing his plan, Mr. Fisher and his top aides briefed educators, union leaders, welfare advocates and others.
"Our supporters see victory -- something the Democrats haven't seen for a long time," said someone close to the Fisher campaign. "Even if they disagree with our methods, they'll be reluctant to say it out loud."
One expected critic, Mark Real, head of the Children's Defense Fund in Ohio, declined to comment on the Fisher tax-cut plan.
His non-profit agency is prohibited from getting involved in politics, he said.
Mr. Pullins and the National Taxpayers Union are bound by the same rules.
But that didn't silence him.
