by David Safier
Grover Norquist, of the No New Taxes Pledge and the wish that he could shrink government to a size that it can be drowned in a bathtub (Why do conservative metaphors involve injury and death so often?), basically let the AZ Rs off the hook by saying he was OK with a vote on a sales tax hike so long as it was coupled with a tax break. And since his is the ring the No Tax Republicans have to kiss, a collective sigh of relief emanated one side of the legislature.
Now G.I. has done something similar. Every year it puts out a Legislative Report Card (Here is the 2008 version). So the Rs are rightly worried (emphasis on rightly) that their G.I. ratings might suffer if they vote for tax hikes in the final budget compromise, whatever it may be, whenever it might occur..
Not to worry. In an email that apparently was sent to many legislators today, G.I. put their minds at ease by issuing a Get Out Of Ratings Free card.
Date: Mon, Aug 10, 2009 at 11:03 AM
Subject: How will the Goldwater Institute score tax bills?
To: Starlee Rhoades <srhoades@goldwaterinstitute.org>
We’ve had a few inquiries into how the Goldwater Institute plans to score the tax referral and tax cut bills in our annual Legislative Report Card. For the last six years we have only scored bills that are voted on during regular sessions, and this year will be no exception. We do not plan to score anything you are voting on during the special session.
Thank you for the work you’re putting into crafting a budget that addresses the deficit as best you can.
Take care,
Starlee Rhoades
Isn't that nice? If you're too incompetent to get your act together during the regular session, it's OK to do something we might otherwise tag you for if it happens during the special session.
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We live in a state where our legislators care more about the blessing from the founder of a Washington special interest group than they do the very citizens who have been calling upon them to put forth a budget that is more representative of the needs of ALL Arizonans. And even at this impossible hour of impass, do they sieze the opportunity to negotiate fair and square with the minority party? Nope.
And here comes the half-empty “think tank” throwing it’s blessing into the ring. ATR, GI, up next: ATRA. There has never been a clearer example of just WHO has the ear of the legislative majority.
Nick.
I was surprised to look up your background on the G.I. site and find you’re a lawyer. Your comment sounds more like something an economist would say: we have incomplete information, but we have lots of numbers, so what the hell, let’s crunch them to 4 figures past the decimal place.
If the facts and numbers don’t make sense, neither will the results. That’s a truism. This has been a legislature that has done very little, and the one task they’re required to complete, creating a budget, is still ongoing. With all the brain power at the Institute, I think you could come up with something that would deal with the real world of this legislative session so your report card actually meant something.
How about putting together your traditional end of session report card, then putting on a post script where you crunch the numbers which include the special session, saying, “Though this isn’t our normal practice, this wasn’t a normal session. Here, then, is the report card we would have created if the budget had been completed on time.”
No need to pay me for my freelance work. But next time you need some help peeking outside the box a little, think of me. I’ll let you know my rates.
David,
Actually, your criticism is misplaced for two reasons: first, as a matter of principle, consistency of methodology is essential for our legislative report card; and second, as a matter of practicality, the bill scoring is complete and the related article is in the editing stage–we cannot wait indefinitely for the special session(s) to end.
But thanks for thinking of us.
“Thank you for the work you’re putting into crafting a budget that addresses the deficit as best you can.”
lol
The Republican legislature is incapable of doing the best, because they are right wing idealogues, determined to emasculate government and give corporations and the wealthy a free ride. That is their best.
Leave it to the Goldwater Institute to sprinkle thank you fairy dust on these miscreants.