Skelton: Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong
For decades, literally, I’ve been battling the tax-increase obsession of L.A. Times columnist George “Not Red” Skelton. His latest is another blast at one of the few things Arnold did right: the 2003 car tax cut (until Arnold raised it in 2009).
Skelton thinks it hurt the budget:
First, cutting the vehicle license fee, or “car tax.” Ironically for Schwarzenegger, it counted as a spending increase, costing roughly $5 billion annually.
Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong.
How many times do I have to keep saying it, Georgie baby?
Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong.
Ok, enough.
First, the car tax was illegal. Then-state Sen. Tom McClintock (whom voters ought to have elected governor, instead of Arnold) was preparing a lawsuit to overturn it. He also was preparing an initiative for the ballot in 2004 to repeal the hated car tax increase — which Gov. Gray Davis was recalled for imposing (among other bad actions).
But most important, by repealing the car tax, Arnold announced, in effect: California no longer will be quite as bad at robbing producers to feed the ravenous, bottomless pit of wasteful government. There are limits to how much businesses an citizens will be robbed to fund the state government’s massive pay, perks and pension for its workers.
The state economy took off. Unfortunately, after two years, Arnold got bored, listened too much to his leftist Kennedy frau, passed the AB32 jobs-killer, then tax increases. Then the national economy collapsed. And now here we are.
The problem with Skelton and others is that they’re static thinkers. They don’t see that the economy is dynamic. Raise taxes, and businesses and citizens flee. Cut taxes, and businesses and citizens stay, produce, and broaden the tax base.
What’s needed is imagination.
— John Seiler
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The vehicle license fee is illegal? Why? Because you and right-wing icon Tom McClintock say is it? Wrong, wrong, wrong. Saying something is illegal doesn’t make it so, even if you are “prepared” to file a lawsuit. You must win the lawsuit first.
George Skelton is by no stretch of the imagination a liberal and I often find myself disagreeing with him. But in this case he is spot on.
The real problem is the static thinking on the Right. Your only answers are trickle down and cut, cut, cut. The state budget is dynamic too. There are times–such as now–when new revenues may be needed to help meet the needs of the people of California, because cuts alone clearly will not work. When the economy recovers and tax revenue increases, these revenues may no longer be needed to fund our state.
You are correct that what’s needed is imagination. But simply sitting back and saying NO, NO, NO, to any revenue increases is hardly the kind of imagination we need at this critical time. Much as you might like to, you won’t “drown government in the bathtub.”
The car tax isn’t illegal now. But Davis’ increase was because he did it himself, with out getting a 2/3 vote in the legislature. Obviously, there was no chance to test the “legality” theory in court because the tax was cancelled by Arnold in 2003. But if it had been tested, it would have been thrown out on the grounds that only a legislature — or the voters in a referendum — can raise taxes.
I say again: The real problem is the static thinking on the Right. Your only answers are trickle down and cut, cut, cut.