In Missouri, Governor Turns Tax Cut Debate Against G.O.P.

By JOHN ELIGON, NYT

MARSHALL, Mo. — As a Democrat facing a State Legislature with veto-proof Republican majorities, Gov. Jay Nixon of Missouri has not claimed big victories lately. So when he began stumping the state against a deep Republican tax cut that he had vetoed, he might have seemed to be on a political fool’s errand.

But over the summer, Mr. Nixon has turned the debate away from the Republican argument that lower taxes bring jobs and recast the tax cut as one that would hurt education and mental health services. The state’s school boards have rallied to his side. More than 100 of them have passed resolutions supporting the veto. And with a veto session set to begin on Wednesday, it is the supporters of the tax cut who are now pessimistic.

“We’re a little at a loss ourselves regarding the fact that there are a couple of Republican legislators who have been dragging their feet,” said Anne Marie Moy, the spokeswoman for the Grow Missouri Coalition, which has been campaigning for the override.

A Republican defeat on one of the party’s core rallying issues could bolster Democrats in other conservative states who are facing Republican tax cut proposals, some party strategists say.

(More here.)