Politics / Barack Obama McCain's Final Strokes Paint Obama With Lefty Brush Democrat's tax plans amount to 'welfare,' Republican charges By Nick McMaster, Newser Staff Posted Oct 24, 2008 3:19 PM CDT Copied Truong Diep, left, speaks with Vietnamese-American women Nguyen Thanh, 72, as Diep campaigns for Sen. John McCain Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2008, in the Little Saigon area of Westminster, Calif. (AP Photo/Nick Ut) John McCain criticized Barack Obama’s economic plans yesterday as the Republican focuses on portraying his opponent as a tax-and-spend liberal with a socialist vision for America, the Los Angeles Times reports. McCain had hoped to iconic plumber Joe on his tour of central Florida, but Joe Wurzelbacher refused. Instead, McCain appeared with several small-business types, including a florist and sports-bar owner. McCain has hammered at Obama’s proposals to raise taxes on families earning more than $250,000 a year while offering $1,000 tax credits to those who are employed—including those with no tax liability—as welfare under a different name. “Obama raises taxes on seniors, on hard-working families, to give ‘welfare’ to those who pay none,” a recent internet ad claimed. (More Barack Obama stories.) Report an error