NEW: GOP Condemns Chafee Budget
Wednesday, March 09, 2011
Travis Rowley, the Chairman of the Rhode Island Young Republicans, criticized Chafee and Democrats for wanting to increase taxes for the already-highly taxed Rhode Island citizens. “Liberals always have a list in their pocket of things they can tax whenever their reckless policies run their course,” he said. “Until progressives and Democrats decide to attack the state's structural overspending habits, the root of Rhode Island's problems, we will continue to sink further away from economic recovery. “
The two candidates for the RI GOP chair, Patrick Sweeney and Ken McKay, also spoke out against the proposed tax policies.
McKay discussed Chafee’s previous campaign promise to not increase sales taxes by more than one percent and encouraged voters to elect more Republicans, saying, “This is the real problem with tax and spend liberals, whether they are independents or Democrats. Once they open the door on taking more of our money to solve their problem it is easy to take more and more from us -- even while many of Rhode Island’s working families are one pink slip away from personal financial calamity.”
Sweeney, who is also a board member of the Young Republicans, expressed concern for the financial well being of the Rhode Island population. "While Rhode Islanders are suffering from the 4th highest unemployment rate in the nation with over 65,000 people out of work, they are also forced to deal with a governor who finds it prudent to raise taxes on clothing, heating oil, textbooks, and water,” he said. “Chafee just increased the tax burden on Rhode Islanders struggling to keep their jobs and save their homes from foreclosure.”
Comments:
Swamp Yankee
4:33pm on Wednesday, March 09, 2011
I'm eagerly awaiting their detailed budget proposal.
Chafee's is far from perfect, but it's simply a starting point for the General Assembly - the ball is now in their court. Lambasting Chafee is now just Political Football and frankly, there's no time to be wasted playing that game.
If the GOP is going to criticize let them propose their own constructive alternative so the General Assembly can consider it.
With the deficit the state has from years and years of a "pass the buck" shell game that the GOP's Governor Carcieri was at least complicit in allowing, everyone understands that such a deficit will only be addressed through BOTH spending cuts and tax increases.
The only trick is offering the combination that hurts people and the economy the least.
That's what Chafee attempted to offer even though I have many criticisms about it. If his spending cuts are too light and tax increases too strong, then the GOP should offer alternatives rather than simply criticize.
Sweeney, Rowley, McKay and any others can keep their "concerns" to themselves. Let's see THEIR comprehensive budget proposal and see if it can offer any constructive alternatives.
Phil Hirons Jr
6:42pm on Wednesday, March 09, 2011
When it was a republican gov. The RI Dems piled on and were never asked for their solutions. We will see the democrat's solution in the early morning hours some day in June.