MN Forward ad targets Dayton tax plan (updated)

Updated at 12:51 p.m.

Apparently Mark Dayton isn't so popular around the playground.

That's the premise of a new ad from MN Forward, which shows children in various states of dismay over the DFL governor candidate's tax plan. Dayton has proposed raising the income tax on the state's highest earners, as well as adding another property tax bracket.

"Dayton will raise job-killing taxes by $5 billion," an announcer says. "That's more than $2,300 in new taxes per Minnesota household."

That claim is misleading, however.

Dayton's proposed tax hikes will hit individuals earning more than $130,000 in taxable income or couples earning more than $150,000. The ad reaches the $2,300 per family conclusion by dividing $5 billion – Dayton's stated revenue goal during the primary – by the number of households in Minnesota, according to MN Forward.

But Dayton's current tax proposal – though it is still $1 billion short – only targets a fraction of Minnesota's households. His campaign also notes that his tax revenue goal dropped to $2.83 billion in his latest budget.

"We … did not say "Dayton would raise taxes $2,300 per family,'" McClung wrote in an e-mail. "We said overall his plan would equal 'more than $2,300 in new taxes per Minnesota family.'"

Dayton's campaign is crying foul, arguing that the ad gives the impression he would raise everyone's taxes.