Government Spending & Bureaucracies

My Perspective on the 2007 Potential Gov. Shutdown

Against this back drop, Gov. Granholm and the Michigan Legislature have preformed miserably and have become poster children for a part-time legislature.  On Sept. 30, 2007, I sat on the House floor for 16 out of the last 17 days, waiting to vote on something substantial.  Up until 3:00 AM, we did not even complete 12 votes during that entire time, that’s not even one vote a day.  Before 1998 and the exiting of pre-term limited legislatures, the budget was usually finished by July.

The 94th House of Representatives is making a mockery of this institution.  We no longer have committee meetings allowing Michigan citizens and job providers an opportunity to voice their opinions and publicly support or oppose legislation, bills are simply discharged on to the floor of the House.  There has been more legislation discharged on the floor in the last two weeks, than the previous five years I have served combined.   We are not arguing over what the best policy or solution to Michigan’s budget problems and citizens.  We are arguing political rhetoric and playing political chess, and posturing to see which political party can maintain or regain political power and control.  This is not what the citizens have sent us here to do, and it is certainly no way to govern.

I am a Christian Conservative before I am a Republican.  I incorporate my Christian faith into both my private and public life; I believe that Jesus is the Lord and King of all creation.  I believe in the right to life, that a marriage is between one man and one woman, and that the Constitution states that government is supposed to stay out of the church and not vice-versa.  I believe in free enterprise and unfettered capitalism.  I think that welfare should be a hand-up, not a hand out, and that government should get out of the way of business and stay out of the lives of its citizens.      

Michigan has a spending problem, not a revenue problem.  I do not fear, nor will I vote for higher taxes to prevent a government shutdown.  If government were to shut down except for police and emergency services, most citizens would not even notice.  If you divide the 43 billion dollar state budget by 365 days, it costs $117,808,220 per day to run state government.  I know it’s not this simple, but if we shut down for three weeks according to the math we would have a surplus.   Bipartisanship is fine when applied to good policy, but if it’s bad policy I will vote against it, I don’t care which side of the aisle it came from.  I disagree with those who say we have cut to the bone; there are numerous areas which can be reformed or cut.  Raising taxes on Michigan citizens is not the brave thing to do.  Holding government harmless is elitist, disingenuous, and wrong.  I was not sent to Lansing to preserve government spending to the detriment of its citizens and its job providers.

The Results of this marathon legislative spectacle is mostly negative.  The reforms were good, but they did not go far enough.  Medicaid Healthy Initiatives will lower the cost of Medicaid; MESSA reform will save on healthcare costs; Corrections Reforms will allow privatization of Mental Health services.  On the negative side income tax will go up 12% (from 3.9% to 4.35%) and they will be spreading 6 % tax on many services.  This will take more money out of the paychecks of citizens, while increasing the cost of services, which a double hit to the consumer.  It will drive up the cost of doing business and drive out more employers, increasing unemployment, exacerbating Michigan's plight.  We might as well put a red flashing light at the state line warning businesses not to come to come here.  

I could not vote to increase taxes on Michigan citizens or job providers at a time when so many have either lost jobs, faced failing businesses and otherwise tightened their belts and made cuts in their own budgets.  Why should government be held at a different standard than everyone else in the state?

Take care & God bless,

Fulton J. Sheen
88thDistrict State Representative