Posted on 08/25/2008 6:55:27 PM PDT by Amerigomag
Much has been written about the August budget put forward by Governor Schwarzenegger last week. At his press conference announcing his plan, the Governor said that his budget plan was "a fiscally responsible compromise" and will "put our state on the road to fiscal sanity."
In reality, after spending some time looking it over, and discussing it with state policy experts .., the Governor's proposal will do nothing of the sort. It includes more borrowing and higher taxes on Californians... The Governor said that more borrowing in the budget is "not a wise idea and I will not do that." When I look over the plan, I see billions in borrowing.
From my read on the plan, the Governor would balance the budget by issuing $3.3 billion from the Economic Recovery Bonds approved by voters in 2004... Then in 2009-10, the Governor skips the state's scheduled $1.5 billion repayment on the Economic Recovery Bonds, using that money instead to fuel spending. In 2009-10, the Governor's budget is built with close to $5 billion in sales tax increases on Californians, $5 billion in borrowed funds from the lottery and skipped scheduled payments for prior year borrowing.
From what I understand, his plan borrows $650 million from special funds, which are dollars paid by user fees and dedicated for one specific program or another. It also would permanently take away $225 million from local government to help balance the budget, despite claiming that his budget does not "borrow or steal money from local governments."
The Governor argues that his plan includes reforms that will "set up the strongest rainy day fund in the nation, ...but I understand that his budget proposal for 2009-10 would not transfer even one penny from the General Fund to the budget reserve.
(Excerpt) Read more at flashreport.org ...
Three conclusions can be reached:
1) Partisan pursuits, regardless the guiding political philosophy, is no guarantee of a sane and common sense work product.
2) The political class in California apparently feels very insulated from consequences.
3) California's electorate is, by-in-large, profoundly stupid.
These ageless political shenanigans remind me that the Achilles tendon of democracy is ruptured when the majority realizes they can legislate themselves the treasury.
Remember when I said I wouldn’t tax you more? I lied....
boy, ah-nuld sure turned out to be a dud!
we could have gotten the same thing with davis.
The new "fiscal conservatism" at work.
“These ageless political shenanigans remind me that the Achilles tendon of democracy is ruptured when the majority realizes they can legislate themselves the treasury.”
Bump. Our founding fathers warned us against this very fact.
Ben Franklin said it best. We would cease to be a republic if the treasury is opened to the mob.
Can’t they even have a danged hiring freeze with a budget freeze for a few years? What the (bleep) is wrong with these (bleepin) (bleepers)??? (it’s not the people who are stupid. they know how to do this)
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
4) Thank God and the founders that foreign borns can’t be President.
By now, it should be painfully clear to even his most dedicated explainers, alibiers and apologists that Arnold the Wonderful is the biggest failure in the history of the California Governor's office. No one can touch him.
Not even his lesser predecessor!!!
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