SANDOVAL CONFIRMS CONSERVATIVES’ WORST FEARS ABOUT HIM
“In addition to avoiding further cuts to education, this decision means there will be no need for tax increases in the next session,” Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval said on Tuesday. “Nevadans will pay no more than they are in the current biennium.”
The “decision” the governor was referencing was his decision to make permanent some $620 million worth of “temporary” tax hikes passed in 2009 that were supposed to expire on June 30, 2011…only to be jacked up again on July 1, 2011 by the governor and Legislature.
The new “temporary” tax hike was supposed to expire on June 30, 2013. Now, if the governor gets his way, taxes will go back up by some $620 million yet again on July 1, 2013 - which makes the governor’s claim so disingenuous, if not outright dishonest.
No, Nevadans won’t be paying more on July 1, 2013 than they’ll be paying on June 30, 2013…but they ARE paying $620 million more in taxes than we were on June 30, 2009 - when we were told the tax hikes would only be “temporary” - and $620 million more than we were supposed to be paying on July 1, 2011.
And among those tax hikes was a doubling of the penalty/tribute business owners in Nevada are forced to pay to the government for the “privilege” of generating tax revenue and hiring workers. Worse, thanks to the worst Secretary of State in Nevada history, Ross Miller, that business license fine/fee – which went from $100 to $200 – is now being shoved down the throats of small, part-time home-based businesses.
The whole thing stinks. And being lied to by saying that “there will be no need for tax increases in the next session” when $620 million worth of taxes that were supposed to go away will automatically be added to the budget is nothing short of adding insult to injury.
Hard Lesson: NO politician’s word, even that of a former federal judge, can ever be trusted. This is why campaign promises MUST be put in writing to have ANY chance of getting ANY politician to keep them. And this is why having candidates sign the Taxpayer Protection Pledge is so critical in campaigns.
SOME LIFE-LINE SUGGESTIONS FOR BRIAN SANDOVAL
Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform and “Father of the Tax Pledge,” today suggested the names of 27 Republican governors who Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval might want to talk to for advice on how to balance a state budget within the guidelines of the modern Republican Party.
In a letter to Nevada state legislators, Norquist notes that in 2011, there was only one Republican governor who opted for tax increases over the difficult decisions that come with governing: Sandoval.
“It's taken him no time to double down on that approach,” Norquist wrote in a press release, “announcing this week that he will instruct state agencies to budget a $600 million extension of a tax increase set to expire.”
“Sandoval should consider himself removed from the 2012 Veepstakes,” Norquist added, “as none of the current Republican candidates, all of whom have signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge, share his view that taxes are too low.”
Here’s the full text of Grover’s letter:
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Dear Legislator,
I write to urge you to stand with Nevada taxpayers against Governor Brian Sandoval’s latest proposal to increase taxes on the citizens of Nevada.
Last year 45 state legislatures and governors refused to raise taxes. They chose to reform government and eliminate wasteful spending. Only five governors decided that they would rather raise taxes on their citizens than actually govern and make real decisions: Those governors live in New York, Illinois, Maryland, Connecticut and Nevada. Nevada was alone in having a Republican governor who raised taxes rather than reform the cost of government down.
Now Gov. Sandoval is asking Nevadans to pay for his failure to manage the state’s budget as other governors of both parties have done.
Certainly one could publically announce that one should never be considered for the vice-presidency as a Republican in ways less damaging to the taxpayers of Nevada. They did nothing to deserve this.
You might suggest that Gov. Sandoval spend some taxpayer money to make a phone call to Governor John Kasich of Ohio, or Tom Corbett of Pennsylvania, or Rick Snyder of Michigan, or Rick Scott of Florida, or Rick Perry of Texas, or Mitch Daniels of Indiana, or Paul LePage of Maine, or Susana Martinez of New Mexico, or Chris Christie of New Jersey, or Bob McDonnell of Virginia, or Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, or Sam Brownback of Kansas, or Nikki Haley of South Carolina, Sean Parnell of Alaska, or Robert Bentley of Alabama, or Nathan Deal of Georgia, or Butch Otter of Idaho, or Terry Branstad of Iowa, or Phil Bryant of Mississippi, or Jack Dalrymple of North Dakota, or Dave Heineman of Nebraska, or Mary Fallin of Oklahoma, or Luis Fortuño of Puerto Rico, or Dennis Daugaard of South Dakota, or Bill Haslam of Tennessee, or Gary Herbert of Utah, or Matt Mead of Wyoming.
They could teach him how to govern rather than raise taxes on Nevadans, as each of them did in their own states last year.
Onward,
Grover Norquist
President, Americans for Tax Reform
DON’T HEDGE, SIGN THE PLEDGE
Every Republican legislator who signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge voted AGAINST the $620 million tax hike last year. And every Republican who voted FOR the tax hike refused to sign the Pledge. So if you don’t want your taxes raised in Nevada, it’s simple: Tell candidates: “If you don’t sign the Pledge, you don’t get my vote.”
To download a copy of the Pledge, go to http://cts.vresp.com/c/?CitizenOutreach/1444a1161b/3add5de2bd/80a6b32df6
ROBERSON’S FLIP-FLOP WITH A TWO-AND-A-HALF TWIST
It was bad enough that Gov. Sandoval abandoned his promise not to raise taxes or extend the “sunsets” (for the second time!), but perhaps even worse was Senate Minority Leader-in-Waiting Michael Roberson seconding the emotion.
“I support Gov. Sandoval and his budget instructions that will not impose new taxes on the people of Nevada,” Roberson said. “I will continue to lead the fight against new tax increases…”
This is nothing short of intellectual dishonesty.
These ARE new taxes. Just because they were passed in 2009 doesn’t make them “old” taxes. They were passed with a clear expiration date. It’s like a gallon of milk in the grocery store. If the expiration date for the milk is June 30 and it’s taken off the shelf on that date, when you replace it with another gallon of milk…it’s new milk.
Extending the sunsets IS a new tax on the people of Nevada. And no matter how many times Gov. Sandoval or de facto Senate Minority Leader Roberson try to tell us otherwise, it won’t change that fact.
But what makes this worse in Roberson’s case is that he voted AGAINST raising these taxes last year, maintaining at the time, rightfully so, that there were other options.
So the question is, if there were other options to raising those $620 million worth of taxes in 2009, why suddenly declare those options are no longer on the table, especially since Nevada’s revenue projections have continually IMPROVED since the time Sen. Roberson voted not to raise those taxes?
And finally, unlike Gov. Sandoval, Sen. Roberson did sign the Taxpayer Protection Pledge promising his constituents and the citizens of Nevada that he would oppose and vote against any and all efforts to increase taxes. The governor’s plan is, in fact, an effort to increase taxes. And voicing support for that plan is not “opposing” that plan.
Sadly, Sen. Roberson – who so many of us thought was going to be the principled GOP leader who would take Nevada Republicans in a new and different direction – has apparently swallowed the Kool-Aid. Ah, what might have been.
By the way, are there any Republican Party leaders (hello, new Clark County GOP executive board members!) willing to stand up and publicly oppose this effort to raise taxes by Gov. Sandoval and Sen. Roberson? Or will everybody just get in line and refuse to criticize their elected officials no matter what they do? And does this mean opposition to raising taxes has to be taken out of the official Republican Party platform this year?
Inquiring minds wanna know.
IAP LEADER: “REPUBLICANS BETRAY US AGAIN!”
“Eleven months before the Nevada legislature is to begin,” writes Janine Hansen of the Independent American Party in Nevada today, “the Senate and Assembly Republican leadership has already compromised and cut a deal, agreeing to extend the so-called ‘temporary’ taxes. If they had any guts and knew how to negotiate they would have at least waited to cave in until the Legislature begins.
“To my many Republican friends who I dearly love, I say, when will you ever learn that you cannot expect the Republicans legislators, except for the rare few (never enough to stop it), to stand up and oppose tax increases!
“It’s always the choice of the ‘lesser of two evils.’ ‘We had to extend the taxes because the Democrats are going to raise them more than we would.’ ‘Let’s go over the cliff at 50 miles an hour instead of at 100 miles an hour.’
“To those who say we should work within the Republican Party to change it I say, you have failed during my entire lifetime to ever accomplish your goal. The betrayal by Republican office holders is a permanent condition. This is why I am an Independent American.”
CHICKEN RIC GOES FACE TO FACE
Ric Truesdell is running for the vacant Ward 2 Las Vegas city council seat. He has nothing to recommend himself for that office, other than a lot of money he’s spending to attack conservative former state Sen. Bob Beers, who’s also running in the race.
But while Truesdell is willing to attack Beers on Twitter, in emails, in snail-mails and on TV, he has steadfastly refused to debate Beers in public. And after watching his performance last night on Jon Ralston’s Face to Face program, you can see why.
The guy’s an inarticulate cipher.
Indeed, a Beers supporter referred to him yesterday as “the male version of Shirley Breeden” - the state senator who won her seat in 2008 by hiding from her opponent and the media out of fear that saying anything out loud would expose how little she knew.
During the show, Ralston did invite Truesdell to debate Beers right there on Face to Face…but Ric chickened out, saying there wasn’t enough time - which is a load of flapdoodle. I’m fairly sure Jon would have been happy to have both men come on tonight…and I know Beers would have happily been there.
And to give you an idea of just how lame this guy is, when I called Ric out yesterday and challenged him to debate Beers one-on-one/man-to-man, he claimed he already had, citing an appearance Saturday at a meeting of Veterans in Politics. Only…
That wasn’t a debate. It was a candidate interview.
VIP members asked the individual candidates questions; it didn’t involve the candidates themselves going back and forth. Alas, Chicken Ric is such a political lost ball in the high weeds that he doesn’t even know the difference between a “Candidate Interview” and a “Candidate Debate.”
Making things worse, though, was City Councilman Steve Ross – who just survived a recall election himself – who tweeted supporting the false contention that Chicken Ric had debated Beers at the VIP meeting, claiming “I was there.”
Indeed, Ross moderated the candidate interviews, but here’s why he’s trying to claim the debate that wasn’t a debate was a debate: The same Obama Whisperer who ran Ross’ recall race, Steve Redlinger, is now running Chicken Ric’s race. So these two are joined at the hip. Go figure.
Bottom line: Chicken Ric has far outraised and outspent Bob Beers in this race and could, in fact, possibly win. But a lot of liberal, clueless people win office. Which is exactly how we got into the mess we’re in today.
FAMOUS LAST WORDS
“During his campaign, when he was an absolutist against raising taxes, and during the 2011 legislative debate, (Gov. Brian) Sandoval 1.0 repeatedly said he believed extending the sunsets was a tax increase. Period. No wiggle room.” – Columnist Jon Ralston
“In 2010, Gov. Sandoval stated that raising taxes is 'the worst possible thing you can do' after a recession. His statement is as correct today as it was then - raising taxes on job creators is exactly the wrong thing to do in the aftermath of a recession.” – Geoffrey Lawrence, Nevada Policy Research Institute
“If (Mitt) Romney is close to 1,144 delegates he might be able to woo (Ron) Paul to help him become the nominee. Romney and Paul have formed a close friendship on the campaign trail and it's possible the Texas congressman would help him lock up the nomination.” – The Hill, 3/14/12
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