The No-Solutions Tour
Governor Beshear has been traveling the state to talk about the projected $456 million shortfall the state is facing in the second half of this fiscal year.
Solutions-wise, so far he's asked every state agency to plan for a 4% budget cut (which would address 82% of the projected shortfall), and he has appropriately recognized that the state can't borrow its way out of the shortfall.
Other than that, he's got nothin'. Expanded gambling is on the "back-burner." He's not sure if he'll call for a cigarette tax increase (if you can believe that).
Page One comments on the governor's leadership:
Seriously. After spending 45 minutes bemoaning the state’s economy, he’s wondering if we’re going to get to the point of desperation in which we’ll need money from a cigarette tax. This from a man who campaigned on a soapbox about leadership. We don’t know about you, but waiting to see if we’re going to need it, a point at which it will be too late to do it, isn’t the kind of leadership we need.
While Page One and the Club may differ on exactly what kind of leadership we need, we can agree that his no-solutions tour seems like a waste of time and tax dollars.
