News & Notes: Rosen reacts to Obama campaign comments

Economics professor Harvey Rosen was brought into the fray of election-year presidential politics this week, when he told the Weekly Standard that he thought president Barack Obama’s campaign had mischaracterized his research.

In a working paper published in September, Rosen argued that Republican candidate Mitt Romney’s proposed tax plan would not increase the deficit or raise taxes on any individual, regardless of income bracket.

An Obama campaign press release issued Sunday said Rosen’s research conceded that individuals making between $100,000 and $200,000 a year would face a large tax increase under Romney’s plan.

Rosen, who served as chair of the Council of Economic Advisers during George W. Bush’s presidency, disputed this claim in an email to the Weekly Standard.

“I can’t tell exactly how the Obama campaign reached that characterization of my work,” Rosen said.

During the Oct. 3 debate, Obama cited a different study conducted by the Tax Policy Center to argue that Romney’s plan could not avoid increasing the deficit without raising taxes on the middle class.