“Let The Voters Decide”

Katy Grimes: In what appeared to be a nuts and bolts, business like State of the State address Monday evening, Democratic Governor Jerry Brown actually made several statements that require comment.

“Some journalists call California a failed state,” Brown said.

In what could be classified as a “duh” moment, imagine for a minute why he said that.

California has a $25 billion deficit.

Unemployment is still rising and hovers at 12.8 percent.

California’s credit rating is the lowest of any of the 50 states.

State agencies are still spending and hiring as if nothing is wrong.

California’s global warming legislation (AB 32) is slated to bankrupt the businesses left in the state, or drive them across the country in search of asylum.

The state’s publicly educated students have never performed so poorly, if they even graduate high school. Education spending is up and test scores and grades are down.

More than half of the state’s residents have no medical insurance. Hospitals are closing, and rural areas don’t have doctors and medical clinics.

Democrats and Republicans ideologically are on different continents.

Fortunately Brown got it right when he said, “Voters are clearly telling us that our state and our nation are going in the wrong direction.” But he went off in a direction that suggests he’s not interested in examining why the rest of the country just last November voted for sweeping changes in Congress. Anytime there is such massive change, the people are not happy with current leadership, regardless of the political party in control.

And while California politics is still whittling away at its elected Republicans, the issues remain the same.

Most Californians want tax cuts, not more taxes. Californians do not want Cap and Trade, or the constriction of business that will go along with it. And Californians do not want the unelected Air Resources Board determining what cars we drive, how warm we can heat our homes, or when we can burn a log in the fireplace.

Californians do not want government healthcare, but do want improved access to affordable medical care.

Californians do not want government control, or the continued expansion of state government.

Californians want the liberty and freedoms promised in our constitution, and that means the ability to determine our own destinations, run businesses, parent our kids, all without government control.

We must remember that however reasonable and business-like Brown sounded during his address, it was the state’s powerful unions that put him into office – labor unions, teachers unions, correctional officers’ unions, and public employee unions.

“Do what is right and repair the public trust,” Brown said Monday evening. But then he also said, “let the voters decide” when it comes to voting on the tax extensions.

Watch out – this means there will be another union-run campaign leading up to the June special election, and the unions will do what they do best – work very hard to keep and expand government and union jobs in California.

According to Brown, jobs can only be saved if the tax increases we are already straining under are kept in place for another five years. And remember that the jobs he and Democrats talk about are government and union jobs, and not private sector jobs.

If the tax increase extensions pass, don’t expect to see the massive cuts Brown has been talking about.

“My intention is to make California again a leader in job creation, renewable energy and state of the art efficiency, innovation of all kinds and a solid primary and secondary education,” Brown said.

And true to his word, job creation, renewable energy and education are all under the control of the government.

FEB. 1, 2011