For example, they will falsely claim that Rudy is a "fiscal conservative". When confronted with facts, what happens?
Turning the Page
July 9, 2001
By E.J. McMahonSeven years after Mayor Giuliani led New York out of its last fiscal crisis, the city's budget has now come almost full circle.
Giuliani took office declaring that city government was too big and taxes were too high. His first two budgets cut the headcount of city employees and reduced spending, setting the stage for both tax cuts and a series of surpluses.
But that fiscal discipline had begun to unravel by the middle of the mayor's first term. Over the past four years, the city's spending on operations has risen so fast that it has now caught up with and surpassed the revenue bulge accumulated during the 1996-2000 economic boom.
The latest adopted budget, which Giuliani has submitted to the state Financial Control Board (FCB) for certification this week, will raise the city's employee headcount to a new high and increase city spending at nearly twice the inflation rate.
