Tax reform

Congressional Republicans err if they dismiss the president's proposal on corporate taxes out of hand.

Certainly, there's much not to like.

For one thing, the plan includes a minimum tax on foreign earnings of U.S. multi-national companies -- something no other country in the world has imposed. The purpose of reform should be to make American companies more competitive, not less.

For another, the president's proposal simply exchanges one set of loopholes for a different set. While Mr. Obama would end a number of deductions for, say, oil companies, the proposal creates new ones for businesses involved in endeavors favored by the administration, such as manufacturing.

The larger point, however, is that the president -- even if it is an election-year conversion -- has joined the debate on tax simplification.

Republicans should see this as an opportunity to raise the stakes, offering an alternative that embraces the more reasonable aspects of the president's plan, such as a reduction in the corporate rate from 35 percent to 28 percent. Then they should put the heat on Mr. Obama by targeting the indecipherable individual income tax system.

If the president is simply playing games for campaign purposes, that will soon be apparent. But if he isn't, perhaps opportunity gathers on the horizon.