The number one goal for fiscal policy is to reduce the burden of government spending. A simple way to achieve this goal is to make certain that the private sector grows faster than the public sector. But when politicans fail to exercise that modest amount of fiscal restraint – bad things happen.
Simply stated, tax revenues tend to track economic performance. So if the private sector is growing faster than the government, that means tax revenues will be growing faster than government spending.
Consider Virginia which is largely controlled by Republicans. Except, in this case, party labels apparently don’t mean much because state spending has been growing at twice the rate of inflation.
And when politicians engage in profligacy on the spending side of the fiscal ledger, it’s just a matter of time before they engage in greed on the other side of the fiscal ledger. That has surely happened in Virginia, where the interest groups, lobbyists, bureaucrats, and politicians just achieved a major victory over taxpayers.
Per the Wall Street Journal “There’s one thing uglier than a Democratic tax-and-spend spree. A Republican one. . . Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell and a GOP-run legislature approved a five-year, $6 billion transportation bill financed almost entirely with higher sales and car taxes. McDonnell even cut an 11th-hour deal with Democrats over the expansion of Medicaid under ObamaCare. …Mr. McDonnell says the commission means Virginia won’t expand Medicaid as long as Republicans control the legislature, but wait until the hospital lobby gets done working the same Republicans who raised taxes.”
Thanks to McDonnell and his merry band of RINOs, while doubtlessly mading lots of friends with the interest groups that dominate Richmond and securing future help with McDonnell’s political goals, Virginia taxpayers won’t be so lucky. Despite what you’ve heard, these taxes are not dedicated to transportation, which is the excuse some are giving for this massive tax hike! It’s just a new slush fund for growing government!
McDonnell and his band of merry RINOs not only left the GOP divided and conservatives dispirited, but the November races in question. No wonder Democratic nominee for Governor Terry McAuliffe endorsed the bill. He knew it would erase any GOP advantage.
Ken Cuccinelli, the likely Republican nominee for Governor opposed the bill, telling legislators the law was in violation of Virginia’s constitution, but to no avail. Once again the GOP elite and special interest won. Irregardless of taxpayer backlash, McDonnell is still planning to sign the bill into law. Please email him and express your outrage at HB 2313.
If nothing else, McDonnell’s actions proves that a person’s true colors will always show within time.
If you once forfeit the confidence of your fellow citizens, you can never regain their respect and esteem. You can fool some of the people all the time and all the people some of the time but, you can not fool all the people all the time.” Abraham Lincoln
