By Bill Murchison
Texas Insider Report: DALLAS Texas Theres nothing more odd in politics than telling the truth: which is why so many Texans not to mention Americans fail to recognize the truth when they hear it. Truths such as Folks were out of money."
In Texas unlike some other places were not completely out you know just a bit short.
But even in Texas revenues and spending expectations arent rising at the same pace. Everybody with a checkbook knows the storyexcept that in political circles it appears to be the polite or the expected thing to fuzz up the discussion; to say for instance well its their" fault (their" having come to connote the folks in the other party).
That might or might not be the truth. It changes the conversation at least. The argument ceases for a time to be what do we do now? It becomes how fast can we throw out the bums who made the bad choices before they make things worse by cutting the wrong" programs or not raising taxes on the right" bad guys?
What often is lost in the discussion are the facts; e.g. Texas state government spending from all the funds at its disposal rose nearly 300 percent between 1990 and 2010.
At the same time population was growing just 115.5 percent.
In other words spending as a percent of the population nearly tripled in 20 years. Health and human services spending rose 406 percent during the period education spending 276 percent.
Sounds like some people in Austin got carried away with the taxpayers money they thought they had to spend. Its the sort of truth that can be hard to own up to when the money finally runs low.
On the other hand owning up is where recovery startsmoral recovery as well as economic recovery.
The topic in Texas (and in other places) this year is responsibility and doing what has to be done. Which we hope you dont mind our saying is the truth the whole truth and nothing but.
Todays TexByte was written by the Institute for Policy Innovation Research Fellow Bill Murchison
By Bill Murchison
Texas Insider Report: DALLAS Texas Theres nothing more odd in politics than telling the truth: which is why so many Texans not to mention Americans fail to recognize the truth when they hear it. Truths such as Folks were out of money."
In Texas unlike some other places were not completely out you know just a bit short.
But even in Texas revenues and spending expectations arent rising at the same pace. Everybody with a checkbook knows the storyexcept that in political circles it appears to be the polite or the expected thing to fuzz up the discussion; to say for instance well its their" fault (their" having come to connote the folks in the other party).
That might or might not be the truth. It changes the conversation at least. The argument ceases for a time to be what do we do now? It becomes how fast can we throw out the bums who made the bad choices before they make things worse by cutting the wrong" programs or not raising taxes on the right" bad guys?
What often is lost in the discussion are the facts; e.g. Texas state government spending from all the funds at its disposal rose nearly 300 percent between 1990 and 2010.
At the same time population was growing just 115.5 percent.
In other words spending as a percent of the population nearly tripled in 20 years. Health and human services spending rose 406 percent during the period education spending 276 percent.
Sounds like some people in Austin got carried away with the taxpayers money they thought they had to spend. Its the sort of truth that can be hard to own up to when the money finally runs low.
On the other hand owning up is where recovery startsmoral recovery as well as economic recovery.
The topic in Texas (and in other places) this year is responsibility and doing what has to be done. Which we hope you dont mind our saying is the truth the whole truth and nothing but.
Todays TexByte was written by the Institute for Policy Innovation Research Fellow Bill Murchison
