Mitt Romney just became the Willie Horton of the 15 percent tax rate

One of the constant refrains of the establishment media is 'you can't say that without proof', then when the proof of the obvious is presented the refrain becomes 'that was already known.'

It really isn't a surprise that Mitt Romney pays tax at the 15% rate his pal George created for plutocrats. The only surprise is that he was forced to admit the fact before he had the GOP nomination in his pocket. Expect to be told frequently that you are totally unconcerned by the fact that a 25 cent billionaire pays less in tax than you do.

But what happens after the election? If Romney were to win we would see every GOP tax proposal compared according to how the average taxpayer fares and how Mitt Romney fares. That has to make renewal of the Bush tax 'cut' much harder.

In the more likely case that Romney loses, his 15% tax rate is sure to be judged as a major cause. The White House will have just won a substantial electoral victory against the GOP proposition that billionaires should not need to pay taxes and it is even more likely that the high end taxes will be allowed to expire.

Making Romney the nominee means that there is now a face to go with that 15% tax rate. Mittens is now the Willie Horton of the 15% rate. Instead of justifying tax rates for some abstract group of 'job creators', the GOP has to explain why Mittens should pay half as much in tax as the rest of us and will have to continue to make that case long after the 2012 election is over.