This was because the economic weather was inauspicious for tax cuts. To be sure, the deficit had narrowed since Poppy's day. But there was still the problem of the good times of the 1990s. Tax cuts are much harder to sell during good times. Political opponents tend to dismiss them as a sop to the rich, who are already gaining from prosperity.
Economists mutter that they are unnecessary or, worse, that they represent a dangerous stimulus.
But tax cuts in bad times are another matter. The support of orthodox economists has always been crucial for tax-cutting legislation in America. Ronald Reagan would not have succeeded in his 1980s legislation without them. While Keynesians' tolerance of deficits is no longer respected, the theory that the business cycle is linked to tax levels is still alive. Unfortunately for Republicans, Keynesians generally will back lower taxes only when they make sense in Keynesian terms - to counter a downturn.