With the federal tax deadline almost here, today is a day for tax politics in Washington, D.C., as the Obama White House tries to score some points on the Buffett Rule, while Republicans and Tea Party types led by Herman Cain push for an overhaul of the tax code.
"One of the fundamental challenges of our time is building an economy where everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same rules," President Obama said in his weekend radio address.
"It’s simple: If you make more than $1 million every year, you should pay at least the same percentage of your income in taxes as middle-class families do," Mr. Obama added.
The Senate will take a test vote on the issue Monday evening, but backers are unlikely to get close to the 60 votes needed to start debate on the measure, which is called the "Paying a Fair Share Act."
While the Senate gets ready for that procedural vote, outside the U.S. Capitol there will be a rally to do away with the tax code - led by former Republican Presidential candidate Herman Cain.
"The big goal is for the movement to replace the tax code," Cain told me.
"And yes, I want it to be the 9-9-9 plan, and that's what we want to make a statement about," Cain added.
What both the 9-9-9 plan and the Buffett Rule have in common right now is that neither has any chance of getting through the Congress.
Democrats hope the recent focus on the Buffett Rule will put some heat on Republicans and Mitt Romney - but there isn't any sense of GOP panic on the issue.
In fact, no one really seems to be panicking on much of anything that the other party is offering in Washington, D.C., as both sides have already retreated to their partisan corners.
