Citizen for Sound Economy (CSE), early success in defeating Clinton tax bills; misleading political advertising campaigns; Koch scare tactics

CSE's success [Citizens for a Sound Economy] in helping to kill Clinton's energy tax emboldened the group. Next, it went after his proposed tax increase on high earners. According to the Wall Street Journal, however, CSE's ads were deeply misleading, focusing on owners of car washes and other mom-and-pop small businesses, implying that the tax was aimed at the middle class when in fact it would affect only the wealthiest 4 percent. It was the kind of exaggerated scare tactic that would become a Koch trademark during the Obama years. The secret corporate donors, though, were ecstatic about Citizens for a Sound Economy. "They can fly under the radar screen...There are no limits, no restrictions and no disclosure," one exulted. (198)