Posted by AzBlueMeanie: "The human capacity for self-delusion never ceases to amaze me, so it shouldn't surprise me that so many Republicans seem to genuinely believe that they are the party of fiscal responsibility." Advertisement So says Bruce Bartlett, a former Treasury Department economist and author of the new book: The New American Economy: The … Read more

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

H/t to Jim Nintzel at Tucson Weekly for this post: Economist Marshall Vest: "We’re Not Going To Ruin The Economy By Raising Taxes Here" | The Range

Marshall Vest repeated his warning that the state budget is "unsolvable" during a talk with Arizona Illustrated's Bill Buckmaster. Watch the segment after the jump.

I spoke to Vest earlier today as part of a legislative preview piece I'm working on for next month. He threw cold water on the proposal to just cut more taxes and wait for the economy to rebound. That economic plan has been floated by some House Republicans, including Rep. Frank Antenori, and gubernatorial candidates John Munger and Vernon Parker, who are opposed to Gov. Jan Brewer's proposal to raise sales taxes.

“The argument is that if you could only cut taxes, you could stimulate the economy,” Vest says. “But the fact is that tax cuts do not pay for themselves. If you cut a dollar out of your taxes, you might get a nickel back.”

Vest says the state needs to increase taxes—whether sales, income or property—because the state can't cut its way out of the problem.

“In fact, our tax burden is not high,” Vest told me. “The state doesn’t ask very much of its taxpayers…. We’re not going to ruin the economy by raising taxes here."

Vest expands on that thought in his interview with Buckmaster. Watch it after the jump.

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

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