It's one thing for politicians to talk about turning around their state or municipality's finances, it's another to explain how they did it. If they turned deficits into surpluses by doing so on the backs of workers and the poor that is, frankly, not something to brag about.
So I am speaking about John Kasich, here, the state of Ohio's governor since 2011. In last night's debate Kasich, an arch conservative, bragged about how he brought his state from an $8 billion hole to a $2 billion surplus since he has been Governor.
First of all it was never in an $8 billion hole. Second of all you should not brag about putting your state in surplus if you end up putting the people of your state into deficit. Ohio's labor participation rate is the worst in 40 years and it has been declining under Kasich. So, while some have gotten jobs (as he claims) many more have just given up.
Furthermore, did Kasich tell us how he turned around the state's finances? Was it done by raising taxes on the rich and growing the economy faster than the national economy? Did he educate and train the state's workers so that they were more productive and innovative than the rest of the nation?
Well, check it out.
Kasich did it the old fashioned way: by cutting spending and raising taxes on workers and the poor and giving tax cuts to the wealthy.
The bottom line is, don't brag about surpluses just for the sake of surpluses. If residents are left with less, how does that help?
12 comments:
Trump bragged about buying politicians. And ... no one had a problem with that.
Trump: When I need something from them, two years later, three years later, I call them.
Compared to the other candidates, is Kasich a moderate?
Ohio isn't monetarily sovereign. A merciless federal government could do to the states what is being done to Greece.
Trump was making a point. He said that he gave money to politicians and got favors, but he added, that was one of the things that was wrong with the system.
Bob, you are correct. Ohio isn't monetarily sovereign, however, who you decide to tax is a political decision that the governor can make. How brave is it to tax workers and the poor? Not very. Tax the rich and balance the books that way.
I agree, Mike.
I work in our state Capital and talk to state Reps all the time...
They come right out and admit that the people who fund their campaigns get their calls returned FIRST... no apologies...
OTOH I ran into our County Executive the other evening at a pub having something to eat and had a nice talk with him after he was finished and he gave me all the time he had... I'd never met him before he would have talked even longer but I had to go...
rsp,
You can always run a surplus if you're in a fixed exchange rate with a load of other entities who do or you can force to run deficits.
Hence Germany.
Any analysis of this type that looks at less than the entire currency zone is always flawed and presents a skewed picture.
Deliberately of course.
Ohio isn't Germany. It might have responsibility for delivering health and social services, as the provinces do in Canada. (In Ontario, welfare is a municipal responsibility!) Smaller entities with greater responsibilities could be forced by the feds to live within their means.
Of course sanity prevails, as there are transfers between levels of governments that help the provinces and states, and programs that direct more help to jurisdictions that need it.
While we don't have beggar thy neighbour policies in Canada and the US with regard to the federal government, private interests have no compunction in playing one state/province off against another. Give us our tax breaks and special benefits or we'll pack up and move to a jurisdiction that does.
Not saying that Kasich was blackmailed by private interests in Ohio or wasn't eager to stick it to the peasants.
"don't brag about surpluses just for the sake of surpluses. If residents are left with less, how does that help?"
They will get more money from the federal government. Auto stabilisers will ensure.
So what Kasich is doing is increasing the federal deficit to fund his tax cuts for the rich.
Since rich people save most of their money the money for Kaisch surplus and tax cuts for rich must come from someone else running a deficit. Most likely fed govt, could be local, other states, Ohio residents, etc.
Remember Kaisch has supported Medicare expansion (I think??)
"who do"
Who run deficits you mean Neil?
*Medicaid* not Medicare.
In the UK we have universal healthcare (until the Tories completely end it.)
MMT folks should use the corruption in our favor. We should donate a bit of money then suggest a couple minor wording changes to obscure parts of the us code that would allow treasury to overdraft their fed account, and not require that social security and medicate collect before they spend. One or two words need changed and voila! Problem solved.
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