The Arizona news cycle this week has been abuzz with discussion over the Taxpayer Protection Pledge and how it has factored into this year’s protracted budget debate. The Pledge commits signers to oppose any and all efforts to raise taxes. However, groups on the left, liberal bloggers, and other spending interests in the Grand Canyon State continually try to portray the Pledge as a vow to Grover Norquist or a distant Washington organization (see here, here, and here). This is patently false.
Yes, Americans for Tax Reform sponsors and asks lawmakers and candidates from all parties – Republican, Democrat, Whig, Bull-Moose, you name it – to sign the Pledge. However, the underlying tenet of the Pledge is that it is a promise to the constituents of the signer , not any single organization or person. Need proof? Just read the wording of the Pledge itself .