Contributor

Ray Haynes

Mr. Haynes is an Assembly member representing Riverside and Temecula. He serves on the Appropriations and Budget Committees. [go to Assembly Member Haynes website at California Assembly]


California Doesn’t Need Saving, It Needs Rescuing
Legislature's Democrats are in denial
[Ray Haynes] 06/21/03

I am going to make a bold prediction—We are two or three days away from a budget solution. The problem? That prediction requires the Democrats to come to terms with the fact that there will be no new taxes this year. Once they realize that, it will only take a couple of days to finish the negotiations.

We are now watching the Governor and the leaders of the Legislature go through the grieving process, a process begun by the fact that they have not been able to threaten, cajole, bribe, or intimidate eight Republicans into voting for a tax increase. It has worked before. They thought it would work again. It is not working this time. Right now, they are in a state of denial, but they are close to anger. Once they reach acceptance, the solution will follow.

As a part of the denial stage, however, the Democrats have announced that they are going on their “Save California Tour” in an attempt to convince Californians to push those “wascawy Wepublicans” into voting for tax increases. As one of my daughter’s surfing friends would say—“Go for it, dudes.” As the recall reaches the weekend when it will cross the 900,000 signature mark, I can’t think of a better thing for the Democrats to be doing than advocating a huge tax increase on Californians to pay for their self-indulgent spending patterns over the last several years.

The Governor’s response has been to cheer this “Save California” tour on. “Some want to talk about the past,” he recently said, “but that is irrelevant. We are looking to the future.” Of course, if we look at the recent past, we find that the state’s revenue has increased a healthy 25% since he has been governor, but we have a deficit because spending has increased 40%. Looking at the past shows that we have a deficit because this Governor, and his leftist friends in the Legislature, couldn’t control their desire to spend your money. Tax increases simply give them the opportunity to spend more.

So, I say, go make your case. Explain to Californians how you are going to violate the Constitution by raising the car tax without a vote of the Legislature. Explain to Californians why you want to pay for free welfare, health care, in-state tuition, and other free government services (to the tune of over $1 billion) for illegal aliens, and raise taxes on the citizens of this state to pay for it. Explain how you have expanded welfare and health care eligibility and benefits by 36% and why hard working Californians should pay for this unprecedented increase in welfare spending with new and higher taxes. Explain why you won’t end the $300 million dollars in spending on part-time commissions and board that pay full time $100,000 salaries to your political cronies.

They, of course, want to tell you that they will have to fire teachers and cops without new taxes. That is a variant on the so-called “Washington Monument” strategy, where the politicians claim they will have to close down some popular program if they don’t get the new taxes. They never talk about the waste, fraud, and abuse that can be eliminated from government without raising taxes, because, many times, some political friend of theirs profits from the waste, fraud, or abuse.

So—do the “Save California” tour. I think it is a good thing. If it helps you realize that people don’t want their taxes raised, that will help. More important, however, you will convince Californians that California doesn’t need saving—what it truly needs is rescuing.