There’s a new theme on the Democratic side of the presidential campaign: tax cuts. Senator Edwards made this point about his running mate when the two campaigned together on July 7. “He’s for middle-class tax cuts,” Mr. Edwards said of Senator Kerry. He said it again in his Saturday radio address: “He’ll cut taxes for middle-class working families.” The pair made the point again in an interview over the weekend with the New York Times. Mr. Kerry said that he and Mr. Edwards had “talked about our shared vision.” Piped up Mr. Edwards: “Things like the middle-class tax cuts.”

On the one hand, this is encouraging for all of us who believe in reducing the size of government. In a period of 20 years, the Democrats have changed their message from Walter Mondale’s “Let’s tell the truth. Mr. Reagan will raise taxes, and so will I. He won’t tell you. I just did” to a mantra of “middle-class tax cuts.” It’s better for the country and the economy and for individual taxpayers if both major parties are competing to offer tax cuts.

On the other hand, voters have reason to be skeptical of the Kerry-Edwards promise of tax cuts. Presidential candidate Clinton, after all, pledged in a speech on November 20, 1991: “In my administration, I will offer middle-income tax cuts that will cut rates on the middle class. The average working family’s tax will go down about 10%.” In reality, Mr. Clinton abandoned his promise after becoming president, income tax rates went up, and the tax burden soared to a recent high as a percentage of the American economy.

While Messrs. Kerry and Edwards are talking publicly about their tax cuts for the middle class, they also acknowledge that they plan to raise taxes on what they call “the wealthiest Americans.” They say they mean any family with more than $200,000 a year in income. This is another reason to be skeptical of Messrs. Kerry and Edwards when they say they are for tax cuts. Most politicians who genuinely support tax cuts support them for all Americans, including the most successful.

Finally, Mr. Kerry has already shelved some of his campaign promises, like universal pre-kindergarten and an expanded national service program of paid “volunteers,” because he says that reducing the deficit is more important. The absence of a pro-growth philosophy on the part of the Democratic ticket invites the question: What’s to say that once Mr. Kerry takes office he won’t cite the deficit in shelving middle-class tax cuts?

Voters looking for tax cuts in November have a choice. They can back President Bush, who has a proven record of delivering tax cuts to everyone who pays taxes. Or they can take a gamble on Messrs. Kerry and Edwards, who will increase taxes on some Americans and, at least at this point in the campaign, are promising to cut taxes on some others.