Sen. Jack Harper told the Legislative Report that Governor Brewer’s staff is including unnecessary items in the budget that benefit their former clients. He believes Paul Senseman, who formerly lobbied for arts organizations, is behind an extra $15 million for the arts industry. He suspects Eileen Kolein, formerly a lobbyist for United HealthCare, was responsible for leaving out a provision in the budget that would delay AHCCCS capitation. Harper said, “I believe that the governor’s staff has disproportionately influenced the budget with their former clients in mind.”
Governor’s “urgent” tax increase budget includes $15 million for the arts
June 10, 2009 By 2 Comments
Honest budget debate requires common starting point
June 10, 2009 By 7 Comments
By Byron Schlomach, Ph.D.
Goldwater Institute
It’s easy to be confused when it comes to the state budget and the competing plans for closing next year’s deficit.
On the one hand, Governor Brewer says there is a $4 billion deficit going into 2010. On the other hand, the Legislature says it’s a $3 billion deficit. The Legislature’s plan claims to trim the budget by $630 million, while the Governor claims $930 million in reductions. Yet, it’s consistently reported in the news that the Legislature is cutting more than the Governor.
Clearly, the two sides are using different starting points, making it rather hard to get at the truth. The Legislature apparently starts with the current 2009 budget; but the governor starts with the 2009 budget as written before January, and doesn’t take into account the budget reductions that were already made this year.
To help address this problem in the future, the Goldwater Institute has recommended that state finances be independently certified by the State Treasurer’s office to provide lawmakers with an accurate figure upon which to base the budget.
But the biggest subterfuge of the budgeting process to-date is the amount of state spending reported and the degree of shrinkage that has occurred in government. Since 2007, General Fund spending in Arizona has been pretty much flat, around $10 billion, as shown in the graph below. Total state spending, however, including all special funds, fund sweeps, and federal monies, has increased every single year (with the possible exception of yet-to-be-completed FY 2009).
In other words, by using fund sweeps, increased federal funding, and other gimmicks, policymakers have mostly avoided actually reducing state government. In fact, state government employment increased through most of 2008 and as recently as February was still higher than in 2007. Local government employment has also continued to grow throughout the recession.
Perhaps with a common set of assumptions and an honest look at the big picture, we could finally get the state budget problem resolved. Regular Arizona taxpayers’ pocketbooks are shrinking; it’s high time government shared the pain.
Byron Schlomach, Ph.D, is director of economic policy at the Goldwater Institute.
Obama Dumps More Money Into Arizona
June 9, 2009 By 4 Comments
Here are two headlines you may not read:
“Stimulus funds for weatherization on way to Yuma families” – Yuma Daily Sun
Western Arizona Council of Governments is being allocated $5.9 million over the next three years through the stimulus program to ramp up the weatherization assistance the agency has been providing for the last 30 years in Yuma, La Paz and Mohave counties, said Gina Whittington, human resources director for WACOG.
Currently, the agency weatherizes about 85 homes a year in the three counties. With the additional funding, the agency expects to be able to provide the service to 600 homes by the third year, she said.
She didn’t have a breakdown on how much of the funding would benefit Yuma-area families. However, she said that typically 50 percent of the clients served by the WACOG weatherization program are in Yuma County, with 10 percent in La Paz County and 40 percent in Mohave County.
“The weatherization money really targets the low income who often live in the oldest and least energy efficient homes,” she said. “These are the very people who are least able to pay high energy costs.”
The program’s goal is to provide the clients with the most cost-effective measures, she said. That may mean a new air conditioner, sealing duct work, installing window screens, adding insulation or white-coating mobile home roofs.
“Some of these simple measures provide the biggest return for the clients,” she said.
“This will help the environment because of the greater energy efficiency,” she said. “Long term, with the cost savings, it could help people build wealth over time by being able to pay their utility bills.”
“Southeastern Arizona Community Action Program gets funds to weatherize” – Nogales International
Arizona will receive more than $63 million in ARRA funding over the next three years, reported the Southeastern Arizona Community Action Program Inc. (SEACAP). About $4.6 million will benefit low-income residents in Graham, Greenlee, Santa Cruz and Cochise counties through the SEACAP program.
Weatherization means adding insulation, sealing leaks and modernizing heating and air conditioning equipment. It can reduce home heating bills by an average of 32 percent, according to SEACAP.
Money well spent? The voters will have to determine that. Something tell me that after all the money is redistributed, all the work has been done, that some lives may be improved in the short-term but things will return to “normal” and the cycle will begin all over again.
Bruce Jacobs Out, Mike Broomhead In
June 9, 2009 By 32 Comments
JD announed this afternoon that Bruce Jacobs will no longer be hosting the early moring show at KFYI-550.
Bruce has always been outspoken and brash on the issues and with political personalities. We certainly hope that did not factor into any decision regarding Bruce’s departure.
Here is a clip from one of Bruce’s YouTube clips. Ironically, listen to Bruce’s comments about being on Phoenix’s #1 radio talk show.
Temporarily replacing Bruce will be weekend sensation, Mike Broomhead – another outstanding favorite conservative talk show host.
We wish Bruce the best in whatever endeavor he embarks on and will even extend an invitation to write right here on Sonoran Alliance if he seeks another medium.
We also welcome Mike Broomhead to the weekday lineup and hope you will continue to set your clocks early to get your morning dose of conservatism.
Sinema Selected to Help Destroy American Health Care
June 9, 2009 By 14 Comments
House Democrats announced today that ULTRA-LIBERAL Democrat, Kyrsten Sinema has been selected to serve with 31 other lawmakers from around the country, to remake the American health care system in the image of the Obama Administration and Congressional Democrats.
In case you’re wondering who Kyrsten Sinema is, she is the young shrill liberal Democrat from Central Phoenix. Here is what Wikipedia says about Kyrsten:
In 2006 she chaired Arizona Together, the statewide campaign that defeated Proposition 107 which would have banned the recognition of same-sex marriage and civil unions in Arizona.[4] In 2008, she also led the campaign against Proposition 102, a narrowed down version of Proposition 107.[5] Proposition 102 was passed with a wide margin by voters in the general election on November 4, 2008.
A supporter of Barack Obama’s presidential campaign, Sinema was a delegate to the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver.[6]
She is openly bisexual[7] and serves alongside four other openly LGBT legislators…
Todays’s press release states:
Sinema selected for President Obama’s Health Care Reform group
STATE CAPITOL, PHOENIX – Assistant House Democratic Leader Kyrsten Sinema has been selected as one of 32 state legislators nationwide to help President Obama reform health care.
In a conference call today, Valerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor to the President, told Sinema — the only state lawmaker chosen from Arizona — that real health care reform will come from Democrats and Republicans alike from across the country.
As a former state legislator himself, the President of the United States appreciates legislators’ unique perspectives on this issue, Jarrett said.
Sinema will work with other state legislators in the President’s health care reform group to share best practices and lessons learned from their respective states, which will help shape national health care reform. They will also work to create a dialogue between state leaders and the U.S. Congressional delegation and have weekly conference calls with the White House until the reform is implemented.
“I’m so grateful and honored for this amazing opportunity to truly reform our nation’s health care,” Sinema said. “Our health care system is broken and families and businesses are being crushed by high health care costs. The American people, including right here in Arizona, deserve better.”
Obama’s plan does three things:
Reduces costs to make health care affordable
Protects a patient’s choice of doctors, hospitals and insurance plans
Assures quality affordable health care for all Americans
Health care reform is one of Obama’s top priorities and he is committed to enacting health care reform this year, Jarrett said.
State legislators are able to see firsthand in their states and communities how rapidly escalating health care costs are hurting family, business, and government budgets, which is why President Obama is looking forward to working with the group, Jarrett said.
For more information, please visit www.healthreform.gov.
Arizona GOP responds to Americans for Tax Reform
June 9, 2009 By 16 Comments
It has to be a difficult task to publicly respond when one of your friends and allies calls you out in front of everyone. You want to be nice and treat a friend like a friend, yet at the same time a real friend wouldn’t have put you in this situation in the first place. You can’t respond in anger but you shouldn’t let yourself be bullied either. So we were fairly impressed with the response that the Arizona Republican Party sent to Grover Norquist at ATR. Norquist had “written” to Randy Pullen at the AZGOP, which is to say that rather than actually communicating personally with Randy Pullen and talking about the issue, he and his group sent out a press release to the world taking a slap at the State Party. Below is Pullen’s response:
Dear Mr. Norquist,
I am in receipt of your open letter, signed but not dated, and transmitted on June 4, 2009 by email. I will respond in kind. For the record, your letter is, at best inaccurate, and at its worst an attempt to defame and discredit our Republican Governor and me. In short your letter displays what is most often described as what is wrong with the conservative movement – an insatiable desire to eat its own.
You begin your letter by setting up a straw man. You state, “As you know, it has recently been announced that the firm High Ground Inc. (sp), a group that advises Governor Jan Brewer, will launch a $225,000 media campaign against legislators who oppose Gov. Brewer’s call for a multi-billion dollar tax increase in the middle of a recession.” Well, there is no media campaign, and as I have stated numerous times over the past ten days to numerous reporters and legislators, I would not support such a campaign if it existed.
I was indeed copied on the draft plan that was attached to your letter and which I have reattached to this response. On asking Mr. Coughlin about the draft plan, I was assured that there was no plan to target legislators and in fact there was no media campaign planned. His letter presented a general approach on how to support the Governor’s proposed budget assuming that the legislature did not pass out a budget, all very speculative.
Asking me as chairman of the Arizona Republican Party, to unequivocally and publicly announce my opposition to and repudiation of this campaign to be waged by Gov. Brewer is like knocking the stuffing out of your straw man; therefore, I will respond hypothetically as follows:
If there were a media campaign (which there isn’t) targeting (unnamed) legislators who (may or may not) oppose Governor Brewer’s proposed budget, then I would be unequivocally opposed to such a plan (if it existed, which it doesn’t).
What is of more concern to me in your letter is your continued effort to misstate Republican principles with regard to spending and taxes. The Republican platform is quite succinct on taxes and government spending. I will quote from page 15 of the 2008 Republican Platform, “Spend only what is necessary, and tax only to raise revenue for essential government functions.” It does not say anything about being in opposition to higher taxes or demanding that our elected officials sign a Taxpayer Protection Pledge.
What the platform does take considerable space to elaborate on are the wasteful spending and the inherently redundant and inefficiency of government. I quote from the Platform, “The entrenched culture of official Washington – an intrusive tax-and-spend liberalism – remains a formidable foe, but we will confront and ultimately defeat it.” What is key to the debate is the need for balance. Cutting taxes without cutting spending can be just as detrimental as the liberal tax and spend mentality. Senator McCain had it right earlier this decade when he questioned the Bush tax cuts on the grounds that there were no corresponding spending cuts. We were in essence borrowing from our children.
The Arizona Republican Party Platform passed in January 2008 is closely aligned with the national platform in stating, “The AZGOP believes reducing taxes not necessary to pay for essential government services creates jobs and economic growth, encourages new businesses to come to Arizona, and ultimately increases public sector revenues in our state.” I have yet to see anything proposed by Governor Brewer to be in opposition to either the national or state platforms.
I applaud your mission at Americans for Tax Reform. We are in dire need of tax reform nationally as well as here in Arizona. What is even more critical though is a plan to control spending. Republicans are out of power nationally, because we were unable to rein in spending. We spent eight years passing budgets that increased the national debt. The 2008 Republican Platform recognizes this problem and is very clear about replacing current budgetary procedures with simplicity and transparency, balancing the budget and planning for long-term costs of pension and health care programs. Unfortunately for us, this recognition came too late.
Warmest regards,
Randy Pullen
PR: Governor Shuns Largest Stakeholder: Arizona Taxpayers
June 9, 2009 By 1 Comment
For Immediate Release: Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Governor Shuns Largest Stakeholder: Arizona Taxpayers
Today’s meeting with “Budget Stakeholders” doesn’t include general public
Phoenix, AZ – Steve Voeller, president of the Arizona Free Enterprise Club, a pro-growth advocacy group, today questioned why Gov. Brewer didn’t notify the general public about her budget review meeting today until late Monday when the governor’s office sent out a press release.
The governor’s media advisory late Monday night announced a meeting with “stakeholders” to review the legislature’s FY2010 budget. The subject areas being discussed at the meeting include K-12 and higher education, health and human services, public safety, local governments, and transportation. The meeting is being portrayed as an opportunity to build support for her budget, which thus far has no legislative support.
“What’s clear is that the governor is still trying to generate support for her budget,” Voeller said. “And she’s trying to do it from people who feed off of government.”
“We have yet to find a lawmaker – Republican or Democrat – who supports the governor’s budget.”
The most glaring difference between the governor’s budget outline and the recently passed legislative budget is the fact that the legislature’s did not include a billion dollar-a-year tax increase as called for by Gov. Brewer.
###
The AZFEC is a 501(c)(4) advocacy group and is not affiliated with any other organization. For more information visit www.azfec.org.
Student testing system a farce
June 9, 2009 By Leave a Comment
by Matthew Ladner, Ph.D.
Goldwater Institute
The performance of every public school in Arizona gets judged under two sets of standards: the state system (AZ Learns) and the federal (No Child Left Behind). Under the federal system, schools failing to make yearly progress over a prolonged period of time face sanctions such as paying for private tutoring and even closure and reconstitution with a new staff.
Arizona school administrators need not worry about any of that too much, however, as the powers that be have rigged the game in their favor.
Previously, we have written about AIMS suffering the largest dummy down in the country. We have also documented that Arizona’s version of the Terra Nova exam produces entirely implausible results. Now a recent study by the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation shows that state policymakers have taken further steps to take the bite out of No Child Left Behind.
“Accountability Illusion” chose 18 elementary and 18 middle schools from around the country, and applied the varying No Child Left Behind accountability rules of 28 different states to see which schools would make “Adequate Yearly Progress” under which set of rules.
They were trying to figure out which states jimmied the details to make it easier to meet AYP. They found that seemingly minute details like how many students were required to make up a subgroup and adopted “error margins” make a big, big difference.
Fordham determined Arizona had the second-lowest overall standards of the 28 states studied.
Arizona’s student testing accountability system is profoundly off track. We have a dummied down AIMS test, an obviously flawed version of the Terra Nova, and a system of accountability under No Child Left behind that favors the school system’s interest in the status quo over the public’s interest in transparency. State lawmakers should become far more aggressive in guaranteeing a quality system of transparent student testing.
Dr. Matthew Ladner is vice president for research at the Goldwater Institute.
Goldwater Institute Hires Investigative Journalist Mark Flatten
June 8, 2009 By 4 Comments
Goldwater Institute News Release
June 08, 2009
Phoenix–Continuing its efforts to monitor state government activities, the Goldwater Institute announces that renowned Arizona journalist Mark Flatten has joined the organization as an investigative reporter. Mr. Flatten’s investigative reports have led to changes in the law and prompted numerous federal and state investigations.
“We take our role as government watchdog seriously,” said Darcy Olsen, Goldwater Institute president and CEO. “And we are thrilled to have the opportunity to hire one of Arizona’s premiere investigative journalists to research, investigate and expose government corruption and abuse.”
After graduating from Arizona State University in 1981, Mr. Flatten spent five years covering local governments in Chandler, Pinal County and Scottsdale. In 1986, Mr. Flatten was assigned to the state capitol, where he provided award-winning coverage of the rise and fall of former Gov. Evan Mecham, who was impeached.
In almost 20 years of covering state government, Mr. Flatten consistently broke important stories about elected officials and policy issues, from the AzScam political corruption scandal to the alternative fuels fiasco. He also led the Tribune’s coverage of terrorism and its ties to Arizona after the Oklahoma City bombing and 9-11 attacks.
Mr. Flatten’s investigative projects have been recognized in some of the nation’s top journalism awards competitions. His series on state racketeering and forfeiture laws won numerous top national awards, including the Molly Livingston Award and the American Bar Association’s Silver Gavel Award. He is also a past winner of the Arizona Press Club’s Virg Hill Newsperson of the Year award.
In 2005, Mr. Flatten was the lead reporter in a special project on Valley developers that won the national Sigma Delta Chi Award and took first place in the regional Best of the West competition. He also has been inducted into the Hall of Fame at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.
Perhaps Mr. Flatten’s most unique distinction is he is the only reporter ever to be banned from the floor of the Arizona House of Representatives. He wasn’t banned for misbehavior, but rather because of an investigative article he wrote linking a former House speaker to the 1976 murder of Arizona Republic reporter Don Bolles.
Mr. Flatten lives in Tempe with his wife Sandra. He has two adult children, Theresa and Michael. You can reach Mark at mflatten@goldwaterinstitute.org or (602) 462-5000 x223.
The Goldwater Institute is a nonprofit public policy research and litigation organization whose work is made possible by the generosity of its supporters.
More details emerge about Supervisors’ $347 million Taj Mahal court tower
June 8, 2009 By 6 Comments
Revealing article in the Arizona Republic this weekend about the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors’ overpriced marble and travertine court tower they are building with cash during this recession for $347 million, as county employees are being laid off in order to pay for it. This blog has speculated that the special interest contractors who won the bids on the tower contributed to the county supervisors’ election campaigns, that’s why the supervisors refuse to back off on the project. Some excerpts -
Maricopa County’s criminal-court tower project has spurred investigations and complaints by county law enforcement and politicians.
Critics Sheriff Joe Arpaio and County Attorney Andrew Thomas opened an investigation, and County Treasurer Charles Hoskins also asked lawmakers to inquire.
County officials spent more than two years working with an architect to design the tower.
The tower will include a large jury-assembly room for the entire criminal-court complex, state-of-the-art technology and separate waiting rooms for victims and witnesses.
“What kind of morons do we have sitting on the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors?” asked Carol Dello Russo of Cave Creek in a Republic letter to the editor. “Now is not the time to be looking 30 to 50 years into the future. What is needed now is an immediate fix to a serious problem.”
Earlier this year, as budget negotiations between county officials and Arpaio and Thomas deteriorated, the pair suggested that officials should kill or postpone the project and use the money to balance the county’s $138.2 million shortfall.
On March 27, Arpaio and Thomas said they were conducting an investigation into “funding and contracts” for the tower.
County Treasurer Hoskins, meanwhile, has asked Republican lawmakers to look into the tower project and told The Republic it should be halted because officials have “refused to give me detailed information about their expenditures” on the project.
Hoskins publically questioned why the county is paying cash for the project at a time when financing is relatively cheap. The cash, he suggested, could be better used to help cover county shortfalls.
“I have no reason to suspect impropriety,” he said at a news conference last month. “It’s nice to have cash in times like these.”
Republican Professionals – Puttin’ On The Ritz, Wednesday Evening!
June 8, 2009 By
Mayor Vernon Parker of Paradise Valley and Phoenix Councilman Sal DiCiccio will be the featured speakers at the June meeting of Republican Professionals, being held this Wednesday evening at 6 pm. This will be the Republican Professionals’ first meeting at the upscale Bistro 24 at the Ritz-Carlton Phoenix, 2401 East Camelback Road. A map is here. The evite for the event is here. Space is limited and looks to be filling up fast, so RSVP on the evite to make sure you get on the list!
PR: Mesa PD Flushes Miscarried Baby Down Toilet!
June 8, 2009 By Leave a Comment
Mesa Police Flush Miscarried Baby Down Toilet, Arizona Right to Life Calls for Protocol, Education
Volunteer Experts Stand Ready to Educate Police & Fire Departments
Mesa, AZ – June 5, 2009 Arizona Right to Life is shocked and saddened to learn of the callous disregard by members of the Mesa Police and Fire departments concerning the body of a preborn baby found in a hotel room in Mesa on June 1, 2009. According to the East Valley Tribune, the 24-year-old mother suffered a miscarriage, and police and firefighters were called to the scene. Unsure of what to do with the 12 to 14-week-old baby after contacting supervisors, “a decision was ultimately made by one or more of the officers to flush the fetus down the toilet.”
Arizona Right to Life calls upon Mayor Scott Smith and the Mesa City Council to initiate training for these departments immediately. Arizona Right to Life stands ready to assist with such education pertaining to the dignity of all human persons. Our staff of volunteer educators include doctors, nurses and lawyers who are ready to help the City of Mesa and its personnel so that this terrible incident never happens again.
The medical examiner’s office, hospital, or Unexplained Infant Death Advisory Council should have been called to the scene to handle the body (ARS 36-2291).
The lack of respect for this little child reminds us of the corroding effects of the abortion culture and we demand that both police and fire departments be educated as to the humanity of the unborn child and the respect that every child deserves–even in death.
The Arizona Department of Health services reports that between 2003 and 2007, there were 2,702 stillbirths.
How your legislators voted on banning speed cameras
June 6, 2009 By 15 Comments
The voting broke down along party lines. The legislators in the Rules committee all voted in favor of HB2106 to ban speed cameras: Kirk Adams, Jack Brown, Martha Garcia, John McComish, Ben Miranda, Andrew Tobin, Steven Yarbrough, and Warde Nichols.
In the Appropriations committee, legislators Nancy McLain, Rick Murphy, Russ Jones, Vic Williams, Andy Biggs, and John Kavanagh voted in favor. Legislators Steve Court, Matt Heinz, David Schapira, and Kyrsten Sinema all voted against the ban.
In the Transportation and Infrastructure committee, legislators Judy Burges, Sam Crump, Nancy McLain, Frank Antenori and Andy Biggs voted in favor. Legislators Eric Meyer and Rae Waters voted against the ban.
Read more about the bill, sponsored by Sam Crump, here.
Taxpayer Town Hall Forum – June 12th
June 5, 2009 By Leave a Comment
Dear Southwest Valley Taxpayer,(Please forward this to your friends in Buckeye, El Mirage, Glendale, Goodyear, Avondale, Litchfield Park, Peoria, and Waddell!)
Arizona has a chance to set a great example for America. Arizona has the worst budget deficit in the country, on a per-capita basis, because of the huge spending increases enacted by Gov. Janet Napolitano and the Legislature during the past six years. If Arizona can resolve this crisis without raising taxes, we will do the nation a great service. Arizona can serve as a counter-example to the dangerous national trend of tax-and-spend crisis management.
Friday, June 12, from 6:00 to 8:00 pm, the Arizona Chapter of Americans for Prosperity Foundation is sponsoring a Taxpayer Town Hall meeting at the Wigwam Resort in Litchfield Park (three miles west of 101 and W. Indian School Road). Here is a link to a map and directions
Speakers will include Representatives Steve Montenegro and Jerry Weiers of Legislative District 12, AFPF Arizona director Tom Jenney, Goldwater Institute education policy expert Dr. Matthew Ladner, Goldwater Institute tax and budget studies director Byron Schlomach. We have made room in the schedule for more than an hour of Q&A from the public at this nonpartisan event.
Please RSVP to infoAZ@afphq.org, and let us know you’re coming. The room we have rented seats 100 people, so we need to know as soon as possible if we will need to make accommodations for more persons. There is no charge for this event.
It is very important for Tea Partiers and other Southwest Valley taxpayers to come to this event. The town hall meetings sponsored by other organizations tend to be dominated by the spending lobbies, whose members come in large numbers to beg legislators to raise taxes and spend more of your hard-earned money.
AFPF-Arizona wants to send another big THANK YOU to the thousands of taxpayer activists who came to the April 15 Tea Party at the Arizona State Capitol. You took an important stand in the fight to save our country from the Big Taxers, Big Spenders, and Big Debtors who are trying to lead us down the road toward ever-bigger government. Like you, we are fed up with tax increases, federal bailouts, mounting debt burdens on our grandchildren, and government takeovers of the private sector (including health care).
Please forward this announcement to other Southwest Valley taxpayers and Tea Partiers!
You can see a photo of a recent AFPF town hall event here.
Valley Metro Seeks Naming Rights
June 5, 2009 By 4 Comments
Hat Tip to Mesa Issues for first posting on this and JD Hayworth for giving it air time on KFYI-550!
As Valley Metro finds its budget in the pooper and homeless individuals spread feces on the floor of the train, maybe Valley Metro should approach Depend for a sponsorship in its naming rights solution? Now there’s a solution we can wrap our you-know-what’s around!
We’d love to hear your suggestions…
Senate Budget Closes Deficit Without Tax Increase
June 5, 2009 By 8 Comments
Goldwater Institute says Senate budget is responsible during economic downturn
Phoenix–Late last night the Arizona State Senate passed a budget to close the 2010 budget deficit without raising taxes. The budget deficit is projected to be between $3 and $4 billion. The budget plan includes $631 million in reductions to state agencies, $143 million in accounting tricks, $1 billion in one-time fund sweeps and other revenue sources, and uses $1.2 billion in federal money.
If this budget is adopted, state spending will be $500 million less than it was in 2007. The House is expected to vote on the budget today.
“No tax increase is good news for Arizona and will help our economic recovery,” said Darcy Olsen, president and CEO of the Goldwater Institute.
The Governor has vowed to veto the Senate budget if it passes the House and is sent to her for approval. The Governor favors smaller budget cuts and a tax increase.
“The modest spending reductions in the Senate budget really amount to trimming the fat,” said Ms. Olsen.
Complicating matters, the Governor and the Legislature don’t agree on how big the 2010 deficit will be. The Governor says $4 billion, and the legislature says $3 billion. The Goldwater Institute has recommended that state finances be independently certified by the State Treasurer’s office to provide lawmakers with an accurate figure upon which to base the budget.
The Goldwater Institute is a nonprofit public policy research and litigation organization whose work is made possible by the generosity of its supporters.
Obama v. Merkel and the Power of Gold
June 5, 2009 By 2 Comments
by Gayle Plato
As Barack Obama woos the Germans with charm, Germany’s Chancellor, Angela Merkel, is not amused ( see drudgereport.com linked http://tinyurl.com/p2nr69). Merkel is also quite skeptical of the financial machinations of the current U.S. Administration. There are stories in main stream media and blogs noting how Merkel is deeply concerned about pending inflation issues and the quantitative easing of the Federal Reserve pumping of money.
The Independent of the United Kingdom wrote of Merkel’s concerns and history: “Germany’s experience of the hyper-inflation of the Weimar Republic makes it highly suspicious of anything that smacks of printing money. Rigid adherence to the principles of sound money have served Germany well in the post-war period, with low inflation and a stable economy.” (http://tinyurl.com/ptfere)
Angela Merkel is openly chastising the FED actions of dollar injection, and of the Central Bank of England’s actions. Note too that Gordon Brown, current UK Prime Minister is fraught with scandals and may face a vote of no confidence this year. Some speculate his resignation is being pushed. All of Europe leans on one another like cards, ready to hold each other up or topple, taking the shaky economic structure with them. Is this a beginning of the Euro breaking and is there concern in Europe as to where the actual gold holdings are?
In April, I wrote of the gold COMEX obligations, and the Deutsche Bank linking to odd transfers of gold by the European Central Bank. Noted financial blogs speculated after much research that Germany was trying to get it’s actual gold back, and needs to prove it exists. The United States holds some of that actual gold too. Does Mrs. Merkel want it back maybe? Hmm.
The Gold market is relatively small and might be opened to manipulation. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has lots of gold and China has openly offered to buy some of that gold. China will be contributing, loaning, whatever- billions into the IMF and it’s happening as I write. There are traders and those that research and monitor every single commodity and stock. When they see any anomaly they jump on it. Cash gold is down 2.4% on the COMEX at this moment, so I do not see any sustained gold buying. If I do, I will be thinking about what is next. Beware the gold trader analysis too as it’s dripping with lots of conspiracy writers who give Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons a run for the money ( pun intended). Gold is as elusive as it wants to be; it also rests at the base of money and markets worldwide.
Once again, we see prices rise, unemployment rise, bond markets shakier than a no-doc loan holding cold chihuahua. A house of cards in Phoenix, with upside down mortgages second to none: the only green shoots- weeds in the front: we all await the butterfly effect. A President Obama and his Czar-o-cratic economic team moves a shell in Europe or Asia, and all might tip the deuce of diamonds yet, only to see the joker standing.
References:
http://seekingalpha.com/article/129128-did-the-ecb-save-comex-from-gold-default
http://www.marketskeptics.com/2009/04/gold-prices-could-surge-on-sustained.html
http://www.ft.com/world
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2009/06/what-obama-told-germanys-merkel-about-mideast-peace.html
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/comment/jeremy-warner/jeremy-warner-merkel-slams-banks-loose-money-stance-1695500.html