Sirotablog
David Sirota is a political journalist and nationally syndicated newspaper columnist at Creators Syndicate. David writes about political corruption, globalization and working-class economic issues often ignored by both of America's political parties.
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August 13, 2007 6:53 AM
GOP Mismanaged Tax Dollars? What Will We Tell the Children?
I am shocked - shocked I tell you! - that under the Republican administration of Gov. Bill Owens, "A state program to help local communities deal with the impact of energy development has turned into a gusher of money for projects with few direct ties to the costs of drilling and mining activities," according to the Denver Post this morning. Yes, under the direction of Colorado's self-declared anti-spending, "fiscally conservative" GOP ideologues, the Owens administration diverted severance tax money into projects like a carousel museum in Burlington and a study of second-home ownership in Vail. This, of course, mimics Republicans in Washington, who in just 12 years of controlling the congressional majority, almost quadrupled the number of federally funded pork projects, "publicly flaunting their power to use pork for explicitly partisan purposes," according to the Los Angeles Times.
The supposed fiscal conservatives in the Colorado Republican Party taking money meant to help local communities deal with infrastructure challenges and pumping them into pet projects. The supposed fiscal conservatives in the national Republican Party railing on earmarks and then quadrupling them in order to pursue their partisan political goals. Really...what will we tell the children?
Well, at least here in Colorado, we can tell the kiddies that Law-and-Order Democrats are on the scene trying to fix the problem. Rep. Bernie Buescher (D-Grand Junction), who serves on the legislature's Joint Budget Committee, is quoted in the Post story demanding answers. And other Democrats in the legislature are spearheading an investigation into tax loopholes that have allowed energy companies to get away with not paying the severance taxes they owe.
To be sure, we should expect at least some conservatives to read this morning's story and try to use it as a rationale to, say, terminate the severance tax on Big Oil or slash local economic development funds (never underestimate the willingness of a conservative to use a story about their colleagues' own misguided behavior as a reason society should turn even farther to the Genghis Khan Right).
But I think most of us regular folk out here in the Rocky Mountain West are learning to see these right-wing economic ploys for what they are: Ploys. Using tax dollars to invest in local economies is an excellent idea, as long as the money is managed and targeted properly. That's what Republican politicians claim they do best - but as this morning's Post shows, they don't know how to manage the public's money. We're lucky that Democrats are now on the case to clean up after the GOP's mess, to make sure severance taxes are actually collected, and to see that those tax revenues are used responsibly for the most pressing priorities.
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About David Sirota
David Sirota is a political journalist and nationally syndicated newspaper columnist at Creators Syndicate. He is the New York Times bestselling author of Hostile Takeover. He lives in Denver, Colorado. His daily blog can be found at CREDO Action. He contributes regularly to the Denver Post's Web site, is a senior editor at In These Times magazine and is working on his second book. He has been profiled in Newsweek and the Rocky Mountain News and is widely known for his reporting on political corruption, globalization and working-class economic issues often ignored by both of America's political parties. Sirota serves as co-chair of the Progressive States Network, a 501(c)3 organization that supports state legislators and that is a partner of CREDO.
You can subscribe to Sirota's e-mail newsletter by going to davidsirota.com and signing up in the lefthand corner. To find out more about Sirota, download his official biography or see his recent media appearances. You can e-mail him at sirota@credoaction.com.
The views expressed on this blog are his own, and do not necessarily represent the views of Working Assets (publisher of CREDO Action) or the institutions Sirota works for.
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Discussion
We need to treat the GOP the same way the SWAT KATS treat their enemies, a sure-hard SPANKING. In the meantime, we better teach and tell our children that caving in to criminals only makes them BIGGER criminals. Likewise, the voters are going to give Congress one hell of a SPANKING or shall I say POUNDING come 2008 for refusing to hold the Baby Bush gang accountable for all their wrongdoing with one hell of a SPANKING IMPEACHMENT ! Why else would Congress get a lower approval rating than Baby Bush?
The Republican party exists to rob from the poor and give to the rich..
They have plundered our treasury and bled out our nation of it's technological and manufacturing greatness..
The war on the middle and working class had it been directed and focused and persecuted with the same vigor against bin-Laden and al-Qadea would have had us seen him dead or in custody along with Zawahiri..!
They have allowed the bankers to thrive on creating and feeding off of debt and thus made us a weaker and debtor nation with a strong manufacturing base so also weakened severely our nation security and defense..
Corporate Oligarchical Fascism over democratic republicanism..
The Republican party exists to rob from the poor and give to the rich..
They have plundered our treasury and bled out our nation of it's technological and manufacturing greatness..
The war on the middle and working class had it been directed and focused and persecuted with the same vigor against bin-Laden and al-Qadea would have had us seen him dead or in custody along with Zawahiri..!
They have allowed the bankers to thrive on creating and feeding off of debt and thus made us a weaker and debtor nation Without a strong manufacturing base so also weakened severely our nation security and defense..
Corporate Oligarchical Fascism over democratic republicanism..
I wouldn't call them "law and order Democrats" unless they are big supporters of "3 strikes and you're in prison life" type of initatives. Besides it would take years of PR before anyone would believe this of Democrats given their decades of waffling and outright spinelessness when faced with opposition.
A better label would "the peoples party, not the party of the rich or special interests".
Because thats what the Democrats are trying do, represent the people of Colorado not just the monied elite and big energy as the GOP does.
spankinrankin, the Washington Democrats would probably do well to take a year long training session in states like MT and CO from those state Democrats and along with it read Bill Press's article on USE IT OR LOSE IT !
Yeah, and while getting the training those Washington Dems should be banned from communicating with anyone associated with K-street, and paid only Wal-Mart wages and benefits.
Frederick, Butte,
Nice idea on the training and restrictions on those Washington LOSER-minded establishmentarian "Democrats". Frankly though, first the party needs to know how to use its faculties rather than LOSE 'em. :)
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