The Presidency: Looking Out for Uncle Sam

In every era there are a few issues that redefine the nation's purpose. In past decades they have been matters of war, race and poverty. The idea that a taxreform program could become a struggle that would touch the American soul seemed a fanciful fiction of accountants. But something odd is happening in Washington.

Men like Treasury Secretary Donald Regan (once a financier), Internal Revenue Commissioner Roscoe Egger (an accountant) and former Assistant Treasury Secretary John Chapoton (a lawyer), who in past incarnations tried to exploit tax loopholes and shelters for moneyed clients, have taken the case for Uncle Sam. They...