Poor North Las Vegas

So state officials are again chiding North Las Vegas for their clusterf*ck of a city budget. And even worse, they're basically putting the city on probation.

North Las Vegas Finance Director Al Zochowski told the Nevada Tax Commission this morning that the financially strapped city will experience a small cash flow deficit in June but should end the month with slightly more than $2 million in positive cash flow.

Hacker also told the commission that the city has been meeting all of its debt obligations.

The cash flow status prompted the commission to request that North Las Vegas begin furnishing the state with regular cash flow reports as the state Department of Taxation continues to assist the city with its finances.

Zochowski and City Manager Timothy Hacker also were directed to submit a letter to the taxation department that lays out all the actions the city took to back up its proposed fiscal 2013 budget. The City Council is expected to vote on the budget Tuesday for the fiscal year that begins July 1.

Yep. It's really that bad now. But really, how did "Nor'town" get here? Well, it's complicated.

Certainly, there's a reason why it's been named one of "The 10 Worst Run Cities in America". Priorities do seem awfully out of whack at times. While a shiny new City Hall opens, direly needed parks and community centers close. And while the city continues to chase development that still doesn't make sense, more layoffs seem destined to happen.

However, there's another reason why Nor'town is destitute, a reason we certainly can't ignore. The state has also had a major role in putting North Las Vegas in this place. Remember that North Las Vegas gets far less C-Tax funding per capita than Las Vegas and Henderson. And remember that Nor'town has to pay out of its own pocket for services (like public libraries) that Las Vegas and Henderson don't.

Again, there's a glaring inequity in Nevada's tax structure, one that even affects our local governments and their finances. And it seems especially cruel that it's hitting many of Southern Nevada's poorest communities the hardest. After all, these are the communities that need things like libraries, after school programs, and crime prevention the most. And now, Nor'town is being asked to cut more.

While the City of North Las Vegas has made many poor decisions in the past on budgeting and setting proper priorities, the people of this city should not be punished simply because of their zip code... And because other municipalities were savvier in snatching away state funds. North Las Vegas, we really have a problem. And it's far deeper than you think.

10 of 11: Is It 2012 Yet?

Funny enough, one of the biggest stories of this past year has been about... NEXT YEAR??!! Yep, that's right. Since hardly anything could be accomplished in Congress as our own Legislature kept kicking the can further down the road, focus turned quickly to the big election year that will begin in just 5 days in the snowy fields of Iowa. And back here in Nevada, the G-O-TEA is in full panic mode after the last R-J/8 News/UNLV poll delivered plenty of holiday cheer for President Obama and Shelley Berkley. Meanwhile, news broke this morning about another big ballot battle coming to a polling place near you in 2012.

The initiative, which would change state law, will be based on the “margins tax” proposed by Democrats during the 2011 Legislature, according to a source. That tax proposal was modeled after Texas’ “franchise tax,” which was levied on business gross receipts.

Proponents will have to collect 72,000 signatures — 18,000 in each of the state’s four congressional districts. If successful, the proposal would go to the Legislature for consideration in 2013. If the lawmakers don’t pass it within 40 days, it will go to the ballot in 2014 for voters to decide.

Advocates for changing the state’s tax structure and increasing the funding for social services and education hope to build a coalition of support among business leaders, gaming, mining, teachers and labor. [...]

However, the state’s power brokers, including gaming, mining, the teachers union and AFL-CIO, have been talking about changing the state’s tax structure since the 2011 session ended in June. The challenge: to close the state’s budget deficit of more than $1 billion.

At the end of that session, the Legislature re-extended taxes passed in 2009, but did nothing to change the tax structure, which critics say is too dependent on gaming and sales tax.

That led to widespread frustration in the Nevada establishment and a consensus that no tax, even one that was revenue neutral, could pass the Legislature, where it takes a two-thirds majority to raise a tax or fee. (A ballot question only requires a simple majority of voters for it to pass.)

Apparently, we truly are coming around full circle and "Californication" has arrived in Nevada. After several disappointing sessions full of dashed hopes and so much kicking the can down the road, the can now looks to land in our laps. And perhaps 2012 will be the perfect year to do it. After all, these folks in Chicago are feeling increasingly confident about "The Map".



Remember when Jim Messina came here in August to discuss the restart of the Obama campaign? When he was explaining how OFA was about to lay the foundation for this campaign, even some on the left were asking how on earth Obama could expect to regain the trust of Americans when so much seemed to look so wrong.

Last night, Messina acknowledged that this may be their biggest challenge going forward. So much really has been accomplished by the Obama Administration, but will the American people really care? And why should they care when the unemployment rate is still over 9%, people are still losing their homes to foreclosure, and three wars are still being waged abroad while Congress breaks for recess after debating whether or not to end Social Security & Medicare as we know it?

Now we're getting a clearer picture... And Jim Messina doesn't sound so crazy, after all. While Mitt Romney brags about his plan to force commercials onto "Sesame Street" and Ron Paul embraces pro "death penalty for teh gayzzz!!!" Christ-o-fascists, OFA has quietly been building a strong operation from the grassroots upward. And when no one was noticing, the economy started to heal and now the President isn't looking so bad after all.

Just over a year ago, hardly anyone was expecting this. But sometimes, one just has to expect and accept the unexpected. Between the changing tide (yet again) of public opinion, the revival of the Obama campaign, the new awareness surrounding "The 99%", and the huge curveball that redistricting turned out to be, Nevada in 2012 may prove to be the ultimate opportunity for progressives to rescue this state... And perhaps take this state in a bold, new direction.

We're All California Now.

Does this sound familiar?

But really, this budget is filled with worrisome cuts. Deep cuts to higher education that will force higher taxes tuition for students. Delays to K12 funding that will challenge our teachers and hurt our next generation. And, as noted already, some very real cuts to law enforcement. As Sen. [ ] has pointed out several times in the press, we are now at one of the most austere budgets in a generation or more.

But even with this austerity, we have not arrived at anything representing stability. There are a plethora of reasons for that, but the biggest of all of these is clearly [ ] insistence on a preference for income and sales taxes over the more stable property tax. Sure, this budget includes the [ ] tax provisions championed by [ ] and [ ], but these revenue sources are hardly sufficient to overcome the loss of the taxes at the end of the month.

As the dominoes fall from this budget, expect instability to continue to raise its head. Already several counties have discussed applying a local tax to recover some of the cuts from the loss of the [ ] tax. Expect such a measure to appear to show up as soon as the November ballot in [ ], and perhaps elsewhere next year.

These funding levels themselves are unsustainable for the long haul. Eventually things fall apart. Infrastructure crumbles, the mentally ill are exposed through homelessness and crime, and the state becomes a less welcoming place for rich and poor alike. And when you talk about business friendly climates, stability is always at the top of the list. For so long we have been able to balance the act through super glue, chewing gum and duct tape. And so it goes this year, with the "triggers" being this year's duct tape.

I could be talking about the federal debt hostage debacle that's still playing out today, or I could be talking about the state budget madness that ended in yet another insufficient, kick-the-can-down-the-road-again compromise. Guess what? This was actually California's budget, and in far too many ways what has happened in California in the last 30 years refused to stay in The Golden State. Rather, the radical right has used its successful implementation of constant paralysis and "austerity" as a blueprint for infecting other states... And now, the federal government as well!

Trust me, I lived through it. It's a very familiar feeling to me. The radical right strongarms Republicans into silly "no tax pledges" that lead to not-so-silly political "hostage crises" that lead to government shutdown, and ultimately disgusting "bargains" that throw seniors and disabled onto the streets, make the working poor even poorer (and perhaps out of work, too), bleed public education dry, and ultimately make lousy economies even worse. Time after time, this is what a crazed minority causes in California. And now, it's going national.

When anyone asks why California politics is so dysfunctional, remember to provide the real answer. Oh, and make sure to let one know that this is what will happen to Nevada and the nation as well if we allow the "tea party" extremists to amass any more power.

Am I disappointed with this debt deal? You betcha. Do I wish for more and better progressive Democrats to fight harder against this nonsense? Of course. However, I refuse to ignore the real cause of this crisis. I lived in California far too long to miss the real culprits behind this garbage, and I know the only way to stop it is to stop allowing these reactionary radicals to become any more powerful.

OK, We Ranted. Now, Let's Act!

Below is the message I wrote to Joe Heck. Please write to him as well, and call his office at (702) 387-4941 or (202) 225-3252.

---

Our fellow Nevadan and our Senator, Harry Reid, has proposed a plan to raise the debt ceiling while cutting $2.7 trillion from the federal budget. This plan includes $1.2 trillion in discretionary cuts, which is actually a larger amount than what House Speaker John Boehner has been proposing. This plan seriously tackles the budget deficit while helping America avoid the catastrophic consequences of defaulting on our national debt.

Please support Senator Reid's balanced approach to avoiding debt default, and please urge your fellow Republicans to allow for a fair up or down vote on Reid's plan, and to support Reid's plan as well. This is our last chance to avoid disaster, and I hope you will vote to prevent Nevadans from suffering the consequences of this preventable disaster.

---

Also call Dean Heller's office at (202) 224-6244, (702) 388-6605, or (775) 686-5770, and email him here to let him know Nevadans demand an end to this political hostage taking. Oh, and make sure to thank Harry Reid and Shelley Berkley when you have time today for doing the right thing. Now it's up to "We the People" to stop the madness on Capitol Hill!

UPDATE 10:00 AM: I just called Heck and Heller. Heck's office says he hasn't made a decision yet, other than he doesn't support debt default. Meanwhile, Heller's office says his position is whatever the most recent press releases and statements posted on his Senate web site say. Neither would commit to either the Boehner plan (which is looking less likely to pass) or the Reid plan (which can pass, and makes sure not to touch Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid), so keep the calls going. Also call 1(866) 736-7343, thank Senator Reid for all the work he is doing on this, and urge him not to give up on passing his plan (which IMHO is the best of this whole sorry bunch).

Madness

Just plain madness.

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) abruptly withdrew from debt talks with the White House late Friday, ending renewed hopes for a grand deficit-reduction deal to raise the debt limit.

"I have decided to end discussions with the White House," Boehner said in a letter being sent to the entire GOP House membership.

Republican officials said a week of renewed discussions broke down as the White House insisted on revenues from new taxes.

"In the end, we couldn't connect," Boehner wrote.

With just days remaining to meet an Aug. 2 deadline to avoid a federal default, the speaker is working with Senate leaders to devise a new proposal to be presented to the House and Senate by Monday.

Madness.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Madness.

Speaking with ThinkProgress today, Rep. Jim Moran (D-VA) offered a take on the reasons behind House Republicans’ obstinacy on the debt ceiling. Describing it as the “the party of denial,” Moran compared the current GOP to the historical, nativist “Know-Nothing party” that, incidentally, wanted to restrict types of immigrants and have daily bible readings in public schools. Moran said Republicans “don’t know enough to know what they don’t know,” including “how serious lifting the debt ceiling it,” or “the results of any of their own actions.” “They just don’t know, they don’t care,” Moran said, adding that “a majority of the House Republicans ran on the basis that government doesn’t work. And now that they’re elected they’re determined to prove it.”

Madness.

The more the sales drop, the more the corporations constrict to meet current demand, the more the corporations constrict by either not filling vacant positions, or reducing their workforces, and the greater the downward pressure on effective demand. We’ve experienced one ‘deflation scare’ recently, and we don’t need to replicate it.

If corporations don’t want their workers to unionize and bargain for better wages, then they should not lament the lack of consumers for their goods and services. The globalization of trade has heightened the rift between productivity and wages, where we once might have reasonably expected increased productivity to be at least associated with increased wages, that cord has been cut. It’s not likely to be reattached in the near future.

We, the people, now find ourselves being ‘info-mercialed’ in regard to all manner of dire crises — The Debt Ceiling! The Debt Ceiling! Government Spending! Government Spending! — while the real, tangible, and most potentially destructive crisis is literally right in our very own neighborhoods, it may be immediately next door or down the hall. It’s the unemployment level in our states and communities, while not a single JOBS bill has passed in our House of Representatives, and they’ve been all too busy symbolically “repealing” measures that might alleviate the situation. Increasing employment in these United States will require deeds — not drama.

And that's the real problem here. Unemployment is creeping upward again, and government budget cuts are already taking their toll as public sector layoffs send the unemployment rate soaring again. Instead of investing in economic recovery, state and local governments are being forced to divest... And we're now starting to see the results of that.

So what are we hearing at the federal level? "Austerity." "Feel the pain." "Tough choices."

Well, guess what? Here in Nevada, we're already seeing the results of "austerity". They're not looking pretty. And it seems few on Capitol Hill really seem to get that.

Doomed? Damned? Or Deal?

Reading Ralston this morning, it's easy to feel like this state is somehow doomed.

This is the box [Democratic legislators] have created, leaving three possible endgame scenarios:

One, they give up enough to the Republicans on their reform agenda that at least three GOP senators and two GOP assemblymen support a tax increase. Sandoval would then veto the plan, and lawmakers would override him.

Two, the Democrats execute what I call the White Flag Strategy, surrendering to the inevitability of the Sandoval budget and give eleventh-hour polemics insisting the governor must wear the consequences. They pass his budget and go home June 6.

Three, the Democrats decide to play hardball and don’t pass a budget. Sandoval dismisses them June 6 and lets them stew for almost a month as they try to stir up opposition, then he calls a special session shortly before the end of the fiscal year June 30 and tries to impose a solution. This is the unhappiest scenario of all.

At the end of last week, the Democrats held hearings on their tax plans, with few surprises and much we have seen before. The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce folks reiterated their support for taxes if (you can’t put enough emphasis on that word) lawmakers pass public benefit reforms. Gaming and mining supported the new margin tax (they also will back the new transactions tax) because they don’t like industry-specific taxes — especially when they are the specific industries. And labor leaders threatened to go to the ballot with taxes if lawmakers didn’t pass the Democrats’ plan, causing some Republicans quietly to say: Bring it on.

So what to do now? Are we doomed to Sandoval's budget of butchery? Or can we at least resign ourselves to another 2003 or 2009 style cobbled together budget of fiscal "band aids" and "quick fixes"?

Maybe. Or maybe it's too soon to declare "game over".

The public has packed hearing rooms—often with the help of Democratic organizers—to protest the cuts to education, social services and state worker salaries.

Many of those same people have testified in support of the tax increases proposed by Democrats.

But even if those who oppose the tax increase are sitting on the sidelines because they believe it has no chance of passing, some Republican lawmakers continue to voice willingness to back a tax increase in exchange for spending reforms.

“Right now we have a balanced budget,” said [Assembly Member Pete] Livermore [R-Carson City], who signed the no new taxes pledge. “But if the right reforms happen, I do think we could do some add backs.”

That keeps alive the possibility of a tax increase, or at the very least the extension of the 2009 tax increases that are set to expire in June.

So revenue is still on the table?

So things looked bleak for proponents of a tax increase to soften the cuts in education and human services.

Yet Republican lawmakers are still open to negotiations.

Sen. Joe Hardy, R-Boulder City, said a realistic conversation is finally taking place on both taxes and government reforms of collective bargaining.

“It’s happening now, as we speak,” Hardy said. “We’ve opened up the discussion.”

However, it isn't looking pretty. Some are already preparing for a huge fight, perhaps one that lasts all the way into the summer.

Frustrated with the stalemate over taxes, union leader Danny Thompson delivered his most explicit threat yet during a legislative hearing today: pass taxes or we’ll go to the ballot.

Frustrated with the stalemate over spending reforms, chamber leader Hugh Anderson delivered his own threat in the same hearing: “Without the reform, we cannot support any tax bill, no matter how soundly conceived.”

As the Legislature enters its waning days, the major players in the tax debate have all staked out familiar positions that reflect the ongoing stalemate between Democratic and Republican lawmakers in the budget debate.

Labor wants a tax increase to prevent further salary and benefit cuts to state workers.

The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce sees taxes as its only leverage over the Democratic majority to exact changes to collective bargaining and public employee benefits.

Gaming and mining are happy to support a broad-based business tax as long as the Legislature doesn’t look to solve its revenue problems through industry-specific taxes. And they don’t really see a need to join the spending reforms fight.

So what now? At the very least, it seems like Carson City is finally having a more realistic conversation on taxes. And while it's far from settled, at least it seems like some doors are opening for a budget deal that at least won't be as atrocious as most expected just two weeks ago.

However, the discussion is still largely happening on conservative terms. The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce is threatening to hold the budget hostage if legislators don't agree to weaken public sector workers' rights. Republican legislators seem to be vacillating between undying support for Sandoval's budget of butchery and maybe supporting a tax deal that won't displease their biggest donors. And right now, it's hard to tell what kind of compromises Democratic legislators are ultimately willing to make. But without a doubt, the usual corporate lobbyists are already declaring the one true "fair and balanced" budget solution "dead on arrival".

It would be nice to see legislators notice this problem. And even better, Democratic legislators may be best served by remembering that all of us who elected them did so by expecting thoughtful Democrats, not "Republicans by some other name" who easily agree to conservative policies. And of course, Republican legislators need to realize that they don't solely represent teabaggers... Believe it or not, we exist!

And now, we need to make our voices heard. We need to continue reminding our legislators that we want to see real solutions come out of The Legislature this year. We can't afford any more gimmicks, and we can't afford to defund the very public infrastructure we need to stabilize our state's economy and end this radical boom-and-bust cycle.

Hope isn't all lost... Especially not if we demand it.

Last Chance to Save Our State

We don't have much time left. Despite his own admission that his budget is way too extreme, "Arnold Sandogibbons" continues to deny reality and push Nevada to the edge of annihilation. Nevada needs more investment in public infrastructure, not less, to survive and ultimately thrive. The Sandogibbons "Benevolent Butcher Budget" would do nothing but imperil our fragile economic recovery, so this really shouldn't be considered a legitimate option for a state that's been as economically depressed as ours.

The Democratic budget alternative is now here. And while it may not be perfect, it has revenue components and it starts a real conversation on actually balancing the budget. And remember, PLAN's plan is also here, and it puts forward a more progressive budget that truly does invest what's needed for our state and our people.

But whatever the final budget looks like, it must be a budget that raises revenue badly needed to invest in the infrastructure that will get us out of this great recession and into sustained recovery. That's why it's critical for us to contact our legislators and ask them to support a truly balanced budget with revenue necessary to build great schools, great health care, great roads, and the kind of great lifestyle that companies and workers will want to move to Nevada for.








So what are you waiting for? Please help us save our state!

The Democratic Budget Plan Is Here

So now we're getting details of the long awaited Democratic budget plan.

According to an initial version of the presentation obtained by the Sun, the pair will argue that three months of budget hearings have proven the need to raise taxes to fund $220 million in new education reform programs, offset cuts to education and social services and replace Sandoval’s short-term funding strategies with a more stable tax structure.

The source who provided the presentation cautioned that Democratic leaders were still working on the details and would continue to refine the numbers throughout the rest of the week.

Oceguera and Horsford want funding to offset $403 million of Sandoval’s proposed cuts to K-12 education. They also will propose $220 million in new funding for a literacy program, an after-school remediation program and a pay-for-performance program.

Although joint money committees this week rejected Sandoval’s 5 percent pay cut for teachers and school employees, the presentation indicates they may eventually settle on a 2.5 percent pay cut.

Under the plan, higher education would take a 10 percent cut compared to the last biennium, but would see $123 million more in funding than Sandoval proposed.

Health and Human Services would see an additional $174 million in funding over that proposed by Sandoval.

Democrats also want to reject Sandoval’s plan to take $302 million in school district debt reserves and his proposal to borrow $192 million against future insurance premium tax revenue.

Democrats will argue the short-term funding options would open a significant budget hole for the next Legislature to deal with and result in continuing uncertainty about the future tax environment for businesses.

All in all, $1.5 billion in additional revenue will be generated and many deep cuts will continue to be applied. In other words, we have ourselves a very "sensible", "moderate" proposal that would make Bill Raggio and George H.W. Bush nod in approval. If PLAN's plan is the progressive approach and the Sandogibbons/NPRI/AFP plan is teabagger paradise, then this essentially fills the middle ground.

So why is this being treated like an unwelcome visit by polio? Is it "DOA"? Are legislators too craven to do any better? Is Sandoval too delusional to abandon the death march he wants to put us all on?

Again, why is it that Sandoval is being treated so seriously when he offers nothing but utter bullshit? Why is PLAN's budget proposal considered so "radical" when it incorporates tried and true fiscal policy that's already in place in most other states? How much longer will it take for Nevada to realize that if it's been this broke for so long, then it's long past due to fix it?

Let's see what Democratic legislative leaders say today...

A Plan! A Plan... From PLAN??!!

Oh, looky here! Someone has a real budget plan. But of course, since it's from PLAN, it's "quixotic" and not "reasonable". So what's so "quixotic" and "unreasonable" about this?

- Making Nevada less dependent on casino revenue

- Ensuring multinational corporations making billions of dollars off our consumer activities pay their fair share

- Ensuring the mining companies making billions of dollars off our natural resources pay their fair share

- Fully funding the investments we must make in education and public infrastructure to attract the businesses we need to diversify our economy

- Ending the undue tax burden on the working poor, middle class, and small businesses

I encourage you to click the above link and decide for yourself. I hear Democratic legislative leaders will release their budget plan tomorrow . I suspect it won't be as bold and progressive as PLAN's, but hopefully this will show them that it's most definitely possible to build a budget that builds up Nevada instead of cutting us to death.

True Lies

[... A]fter another beautifully choreographed maneuver Tuesday, a near-perfect synergy of politics and policy, the administration has served notice to some apparently overmatched legislative opponents that he is playing in a different league. After adding back nearly $50 million in social service programs Tuesday, Sandoval will announce next week that an estimated $100 million-plus of additional funding from renewed economic projections will pour into education.

And then, five weeks from the end of the regular session, the governor will essentially smile, look across the courtyard and say, “I have been beneficent. I have salvaged social service programs and diminished the education cuts. For you, my dear Democratic friends, it’s either take that or show the world all you care about is raising taxes.”

It is beautifully horrific, like the Peckinpah ballet of violence at the end of “The Wild Bunch.” You stand back and admire the skill and craftsmanship, trying to forget the carnage left in its wake.

Team Sandoval gathered reporters Tuesday afternoon to take us through a panoply of programs being restored because of found money, mostly in Medicaid, that came from reduced caseloads and federal changes. The inestimable Mike Willden, the Health and Human Services boss, checked off the programs being restored, showing clear satisfaction that what he called “core services” were being resurrected.

But as he went through the list, I smiled knowingly as I saw that key rural programs were in the mix — programs certain GOP lawmakers who might be pressured to raise taxes to preserve them needed to have returned to the budget. If you believe this is a coincidence, you also think Donald Trump is a serious man.

I wanted to applaud, but it seemed inappropriate.

So Jon Ralston is admiring the "beautiful carnage" of Brian Sandoval's budget of "true lies". So Sandoval can now have everything he wants and have us all worship at his feet? Are we all supposed to be blinded by Brian Sandoval's "political mastery" and ignore the butchery of his plan to destroy Nevada as we know it?

Maybe not? Maybe the budget isn't yet a done deal?

Asked whether Sandoval’s moves would weaken their leverage, Democrats were quick to point out that the budget is in their hands now.

“The budget is being developed by this body and these are just his recommendations,” said Assemblywoman Debbie Smith, D-Sparks, chairwoman of Ways and Means.

Some Republicans agree. Sen. Ben Kieckhefer, R-Reno, who was among those lobbying Sandoval to rethink his cuts to autism treatment, said he’s pleased Sandoval is still involved in the process.

“But it’s up to the Legislature to decide how to plug it back in,” Kieckhefer added.

As for not negotiating with Democrats, Kieckhefer said “the ability to negotiate add backs is contingent on an ability to locate the money.”

In other words, Democrats need to stop playing coy with their revenue plans.

Still, Democrats have enough of a majority to make the ultimate decision on where additional revenue goes.

As for Republicans who may want to rely on the governor: “They may be in for a surprise,” Leslie said.

Indeed, The Legislature ultimately has final authority on what's in the budget and what is allocated where. Republicans can't just count on Sandoval to spare their districts while pointing his red ink pens at urban areas.

Are we supposed to ignore what's actually happening throughout the state? Are we supposed to accept this bizarre suspension of belief in Carson City? Are we supposed to accept, "They don't get it. We don't care." as a legitimate position on keeping the state functioning?

Are we now supposed to accept this for "state government"? Or will we say enough to "Arnold Sandoval" and his true lies?

Californication... Is Here?

Here we go again. Republicans scream when Shelley Berkley tries to talk sense into them.

“I’m very careful not to criticize people in this room,” Berkley said, noting the debate that stretched almost until midnight on Tuesday. “But in my mind, gutting our education system is shortchanging our children and almost as importantly as that, it is undermining our ability to diversify our economy.”

Sandoval attended the speech but was unavailable after to give a reaction to Berkley’s comments.

Talking to reporters after her speech, Berkley said lawmakers can’t let revenue challenges deprive “an entire generation of people” of an education and stressed the importance of diverting federal dollars into Nevada’s education system.

And The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce (!!!) tries to do the same.

Seems the conservative folks over at Keystone Corporation are not happy that the supposedly conservative folks over at the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce are open to tax increases if certain reforms are enacted, that the chamber believes the budget cuts are deep and severe.

So they're out to sic Bob List on them? Wait, isn't he already busy trying to shove nuclear waste down our throats?

Wait a minute... Haven't we been down this road before? And is this getting way too familiar?

But at bottom there’s still the same old question: How much pain and inconvenience will taxpayers have to suffer before they understand that there’s no such thing as a free lunch? How many potholes and unsafe bridges; how many cancelled university classes; how high the tuition; how short the school calendar; how slow the response from the fire department, how long the wait at the DMV? Or do we simply not care?

The [-----], said GOP Assembly leader [-----], is trying to scare people by trying to tell them that the budget deficit either requires even more severe cuts than the state has already made or the tax extensions the governor wants.

That’s a false choice, quoth [---], "It's disingenuous to scare people." You can fix it all with fiddles and efficiency. And pigs can fly.

The [------] and [---] fellow Democrats say they’re not trying to scare people, just going to tell the facts, though he’s also said -- as he did at a meeting of the Service Employees International Union the other day -- that the worst case scenario [meaning no tax extensions] would be really ugly. He also says he’s going to focus on Republican districts and is urging his backers to “hug” a Republican. That’s not quite like saying kiss a frog, hoping he’ll turn back into a prince, but close enough.

[-------], the president pro-tem of the Senate, meanwhile, is saying he won’t support closing all of the remaining $15 billion budget gap with just cuts alone.

These blanks can easily be filled with the likes of Pete Goicoechea and Mark Sherwood on the GOP side, and by Steven Horsford and Sheila Leslie on the Democratic side. But guess what? It's an article about California's budget crisis!

Yep, that's right. Republicans here always make scary comments about this state becoming some sort of "Little California", but their very obstruction on the budget and diabolical brinksmanship games with state government are turning us into California!

Sometimes, I really do wonder if Republican legislators are spending time that should be used working on a budget deal to instead study up on how California Republicans have turned Sacramento into an endless game of "Mortal Combat"... Where the folks who get killed off are kids in need of education, and seniors & disabled in need of health care. Read Calitics' budget diaries and notice the strange air of familiarity to them.

It seems like both at the federal level and in other states, Republicans are exporting the California model of obstructing their way to broken government to the rest of the country.

So why are they obstructing? Why are they willing to drive Nevada off the cliff, California-style? As always, Desert Beacon has the answer.

Truth be told, federal income taxes on the American middle class are now at an historically low level. [CBPP] This begs the question, if federal taxes on middle income Americans are at an historically low level, and the Nevada "tax burden" is one of the lowest in the nation especially as measured by "business climate" criteria [TTF]  -- then who is doing all the whining?

The answer to that question should be relatively apparent by now: Corporate Interests and Upper Income Earners. Thus, we are not speaking of "taxing people out of their homes," (middle income earners having the lowest rate since Presley was singing "That's All Right Mama"), and we're not speaking to "taxing people out of their businesses" (if indeed the Tax Foundation is correct and Nevada is ranked 4th in the nation in business climate).  Assemblyman Livermore, and his GOP cohorts, are evidently more concerned with the revenue side of the corporate world than with the revenue side of the state government balance sheet.  There's no particular reason that the Assembly debate on the state budget would end any other way than in a stalemate  [LVSun] since Republicans like Assemblyman [Pete] Livermore (R-Carson City) have adopted an ideological stance at variance with economic reality.  When the mantra "No New Taxes" morphs into "No Taxes At All" it's hard to move the discussion forward.

What makes the argument about "taxing people from their homes and businesses" ultimately risible is the drift of the tax burden away from the ultra-wealthy in this country toward middle income Americans: "This diminished tax burden on the wealthiest has contributed to the historically low federal revenue levels we are seeing today, and in turn, to higher deficits. The Congressional Budget Office projects federal revenue in 2011 will total 14.8% of GDP—the lowest level since 1950. At the same time that the tax burden has shifted away from the wealthy, this same top income group has enjoyed  massively disproportionate income gains.  Between 1992 and 2007, a time in which income for the average household and top one percent grew 13% and 123%, respectively, the income for the top 400 households grew fully 399%." [EPI ]

It's really about ideology. California Republicans do it all the time and try to get away with it by hiding behind undemocratic supermajority rules and procedures, and Nevada Republicans now look to be doing the same.

However, the ending hasn't yet been written for this "True Hollywood Story".

"Our review (of Gov. Brian Sandoval's budget) has led us to believe additional tax revenue may be necessary," wrote Hugh Anderson, chair of the Government Affairs Committee in a letter released this afternoon. "However, let me be clear: The Chamber's willingness to support additional tax revenue is absolutely dependent on the passage this year of significant and meaningful reforms that will fix systemic problems that are plaguing our state."

The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce has been seen as key to providing political cover for Republicans in the Assembly and Senate. Democrats need at least some support to pass a tax increase. [...]

Anderson laid out the effect of some of Sandoval's proposed cuts. It said class sizes would increase in grades 1 to 12 by two students, on average. It also said school district personnel would take a 7.8 percent pay reduction. It said core degrees would be eliminated from higher education.

If even The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce (!!!) is willing to come to the table and support badly needed revenues to keep our state alive, then Republicans need to be brought to the table. And as I said yesterday, this is the part where we go in and take them there.

Assembly Republicans Afraid to "Face the Budget"

“I ask you and I beg of you to think about the people you serve,” Assemblywoman April Mastroluca, D-Henderson, said. “Tell them we worked together to come up with a compromise to do what we thought was best...” [...]

Republican lawmakers did their own fair share of browbeating, accusing Democrats of putting on a disingenuous show for the public.

“The compromise and what you want is convenient when we have a forum and you try to paint these guys as hating kids,” Assemblyman Mark Sherwood, R-Henderson, said. “This is a farce.”

Republicans have accused Democrats of refusing to come to the table to debate reform measures on their priorities — an accusation that is flat wrong, according to Assembly Speaker John Oceguera, D-Las Vegas.

“Let’s name the bills you wish to have available,” Oceguera replied to Sherwood. “I believe that the construction defect bill, I have that bill, it is still alive. A (public employee retirement) reform bill, it’s still alive. Prevailing wage, we have that bill. Still alive. Tell me your other reforms. I think I answered all these questions.”

So last night, The Assembly was stuck at a stalemate over the budget. Despite all the public hearings, all the negotiations over other legislation, and all the public and private pleas for compromise, Republicans just said no and just walked away.

I wonder if they would have done the same if the very people they and Brian Sandoval are threatening would have been there in person.

I guess they need more of this...





And more of your input! Please keep sending messages to your legislators. It may seem "pointless" at first glance, but it really isn't. Let me tell you why.

Ultimately, these legislators have to face "we the people" in their next election. And while in Carson, they have to keep a running tab on who's contacting them on what. They only know that we're here when we tell them, and they only feel the pressure to come to the table when we apply that pressure.

As we've talked about before, it's long past due for the greedy, tax-evading mining corporations and "mega-box" multinational corporations to pay their fair share after making us "endure the pain" all by ourselves for far too long. And as we've talked about before, we need to get involved and stay involved to make a difference. So don't give up. Make these Republican legislators come to the table!

Time for Us to "Face the Budget"

OK, so you've already been hearing plenty from me on the state of our state. So today, I won't preach at you again. Instead, listen to these fine Nevadans...









Then join Nevada Values Coalition in making their voices and our voices heard in Carson City! And remember to Click to Tweet so that all your friends on Twitter see this as well. Oh, and it may also be a good idea to send these videos to your legislators. Just saying...

Obama's Homerun?

"There's nothing serious about a plan that claims to reduce the deficit by spending a trillion dollars on tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires," Mr. Obama said of budget proposals put forward by Republicans in the House. "There's nothing courageous about asking for sacrifice from those who can least afford it and don't have any clout on Capitol Hill. And this is not a vision of the America I know."

In his remarks, delivered at George Washington University, Mr. Obama offered an impassioned defense of the popular Medicare and Medicaid programs against Republican proposals for sweeping changes in them. "We are a better country because of these commitments," he said of the programs. "I'll go further - we would not be a great country without those commitments."

See. I told you this would happen. Of course, this also happened.

Anticipating criticism of his plan from his Democratic supporters, Mr. Obama pleaded for understanding as he pursues cuts to government spending and seeks changes to programs like Medicare.

"If we truly believe in a progressive vision of our society, we have the obligation to prove that we can afford our commitments," he said.

Rather than change Medicare to a voucher program, Mr. Obama proposes broad reforms that he says would save hundreds of billions of dollars over the next 12 years and more than $1 trillion in the following decade.

But again, as I said earlier, this is the consequence of divided government. There has to be some give and take. But thankfully, President Obama avoided a huge demoralizing moment by sticking to his commitment to protect America's social safety net.

And really, Obama is playing smart politics here. By offering a realistic deficit plan, albeit one that isn't ideal for progressives looking for more effective ways to encourage more economic recovery and job creation while tackling real waste in military spending, he looks to be above the fray of the messy warfare in Congress. And if House Republicans really follow through on their threat to initiate a global economic catastrophe if they don't get their way on impoverishing millions of American seniors, they only stand to lose radically.

Jed Lewison of DKos probably sums it up best.

My quick take: it was a terrific speech, and offered a credible approach to long-term fiscal policy. It did an effective job of making the case for not just a progressive revenue stream, but a progressive government, and properly framed the GOP proposal as antithetical to the vision of America shared by most of the people in this country. He framed fiscal policy, properly, as being the way by which we fund government so that it can do what we want it to do, in contrast to the GOP's vision of fiscal policy, which seems to mean nothing but "cut government." Obviously, the true test here isn't just President Obama's speech today, but also what he manages to accomplish in the coming months and years as this debate unfolds. But at least in my view, today was a great way to start.

Thankfully, Obama hit it out of the park today. He rightfully blasted Paul Ryan's dreams of more bailouts for billionaires while working families die on the streets as anything but "courageous". He explained beautifully the need for tax fairness, then turned the tables on Republicans by demanding they come to the bargaining table after he's already been negotiating and compromising with them. Now this is the way to take on both the deficit and Republican intransigence!

If this is the Barack Obama we see in the next five months as debt and deficits are being debated, then we're in much better shape than I had originally imagined.

The "Bipartisan Deals" No One Likes

It's been said that the hallmark of a good bipartisan compromise on legislation is that it irritates broad swaths of folks across the ideological spectrum. If that's the case, then we have a real winner in the budget deal President Obama made with Congressional Republicans... As well as the next deal about to be made on next year's budget and the debt ceiling!

From RedState:

It is becoming more and more clear that Republicans got played in the budget deal. Likewise, envirowackos have gone totally wild.

From National Review:

"Friday’s much-heralded budget deal is a pyrrhic victory for deficit hawks....Obama was able to preserve many, if not most, of his pet projects, like Pell Grants, Planned Parenthood funding, and Americorps. It’s not clear who should be licking their wounds today."

From Paul Krugman:

I realize that with hostile Republicans controlling the House, there’s not much Mr. Obama can get done in the way of concrete policy. Arguably, all he has left is the bully pulpit. But he isn’t even using that — or, rather, he’s using it to reinforce his enemies’ narrative.
His remarks after last week’s budget deal were a case in point.

Maybe that terrible deal, in which Republicans ended up getting more than their opening bid, was the best he could achieve — although it looks from here as if the president’s idea of how to bargain is to start by negotiating with himself, making pre-emptive concessions, then pursue a second round of negotiation with the G.O.P., leading to further concessions...

And from Joan McCarter at Daily Kos:

Democrats once again fail Budget Negotiation 101. With the White House apparently at the very least flirting with the catfood commission (we need a Magic 8 Ball on this one, because just hours ago, the story was different), the House Dems have gone all in. [...]

Apparently, they're ignoring the advice of Leader Nancy Pelosi, who has argued that Democrts need to do what they did when Bush was trying to privatize Social Security in 1995: don't take the bait. The bait has been swallowed.

In rhetorically embracing the demonstrably right-wing catfood commission as the "reasonable" middle, even without endorsing all of its non-proposals, Dems start these upcoming negotiations having ceded important ideological ground from the get-go. Van Hollen did make some good points, according to this TPM story, including the fact that the non-report from the commission's chairs assumed that the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy would expire. The non-report also failed to address in any kind of substantive way the spending and cost drivers for Medicare and Medicaid—cost drivers for the entire federal budget—continuing rising health care costs. But it is nowhere near a progressive, even a traditional Democratic, plan.

It really underscores Obama's challenge tonight in presenting a "balanced approach" to balancing the budget. Even as he faces huge challenges abroad with Middle East unrest and continued fallout from Japan's huge earthquake and tsunami, the key challenge now really looks to be domestic. The teabaggers on the extreme right will be pleased by nothing (other than perhaps Obama being impeached on fictitious charges, then replaced by "President Donald Trump"), and now the left is becoming more vociferous in drawing a line in the sand. Meanwhile, folks from across the blogosphere keep yelling and screaming and taunting Obama as "weak".

It's interesting to see all these complaints now, and to see the glories of our dysfunctional system at work. Congress has to agree on a budget, but hardly anyone wants to make the tough choices and tougher compromises. And as the debt ceiling quickly approaches, some Republicans in Congress are enjoying flirting with total annihilation. Still, we need to recognize good policy and fight for it... And hopefully, Obama will do just that tonight.

Still, let this be a lesson learned (so far) that no one can get everything one wants with a divided government.

Obama's Rubicon?

May this be the ultimate defining moment of The Obama Administration? Will it really all come down to this?

President Obama will call for shrinking the nation's long-term deficits by raising taxes on wealthier Americans and requiring them to pay more into Social Security, drawing a barbed contrast with a Republican plan to save money by deeply slashing Medicare, Medicaid and other domestic spending.

Obama will offer some spending cuts, including trims to the Pentagon's budget, but his speech Wednesday is likely to provide Americans with a vivid choice between higher taxes or fewer benefits, issues that will color the national debate straight through the 2012 election.

So what will President Obama say? The LA Times may be offering a hint...

Democrats hope to repeat the experience of 2005, in which President George W. Bush's proposal to privatize parts of Social Security proved to be a staggering miscalculation that cost his party heavily in the next year's election. They think voters will not accept a Republican proposal put forward by Rep. Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) that would replace guaranteed Medicare benefits with a limited voucher. [...]

"We strongly disagree with the lack of balance in Congressman Ryan's approach," [White House Press Secretary Jay] Carney said. "It simply is not appropriate and it would not be supported by the American people to have a fiscal plan that relies on dramatic restructuring, reform of the kind of programs that provide security and health security to seniors and to poor people and to disabled people, and at the same time gives enormous tax relief, tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans."

Though The Washington Post suggests something different, and The PCCC is already organizing AGAINST Obama and flirting with the possibility of a primary challenge next year. So is Obama preparing to do the unthinkable in slashing and burning The New Deal and Great Society? Is this "Nixon Goes to China" for Obama?

Or is this something else? Ezra Klein tweeted that The White House directly told him so, and Greg Sargent is suddenly... GASP!... Feeling more hopeful about tomorrow evening's Presidential Speech.

At the White House press briefing today, spokesman Jay Carney hinted that all the reporting out there today is wrong, and insisted Obama’s vision would not be based solely on any particular plan.

“He has said very clearly that he supports the efforts of the so-called Gang of Six and others who are addressing these challenges in a very serious way,”Carney said. “That’s a healthy, good thing, and it’s reflective of the environment that was created by the president’s fiscal commission after it reported last year...He will provide his vision tomorrow.”

I could be wrong, but that sounds to me like the White House actively doesn’t want Obama’s eventual vision to be seen as anything but his own, despite commentary to the contrary. Obama intended the fiscal commission to start a conversation, not set his final blueprint for him. “It will be his,” Carney said. [...]

As The Post reports today, “letting others take the lead on complex problems has become a hallmark of the Obama presidency.” But it’s also a hallmark of the Obama presidency for him to step in just when such chatter is at its peak and articulate a vision that, by his lights, represents the best of what others contributed to the debate while he waited in the wings. So we'll see.

So what can we expect tomorrow? Maybe we need to stop reading into Obama what we want to see?

Honestly, I think it was the biggest mistake far too many voters made in 2008. They looked at the nebulous promise of "hope" and "change", and read into it whatever they wanted: that Obama would be a great "Progressive Messiah" ushering in a golden age of public works programs, single-payer health care, and marriage equality; or that Obama would be some "Crazy Communist" out to socialize everything in sight; or that Obama would be playing hoops with Lamar Odom and doing photo shoots with Scarlett Johansen all day. Seriously, Barack Obama isn't the kind of politician that likes to be boxed in by ideological labels or branded as some part of some specific DC clique.

Rather, what Obama has been trying to do this whole time he's been in office so far is to make his own unique mark on the major legislative hurdles of our time. And he wants to do so on his terms. That's why I'm willing to hear him out tomorrow.

After all, this may be the pivotal moment of truth for Obama. Does he want to be known as the President conveying the wrong message at the wrong time? Does he want to be known as someone who threw the country back into total economic misery by cutting the poor, disabled, and elderly to death? Or does he want to be known as someone who brought about lasting change that put America firmly into economic recovery and beyond the doldrums of "Bush's Great Recession"?

This may really be President Obama's Rubicon Moment. And believe it or not, I'm thinking he will put extra thought into what he does and understand we can't forget what we value the most.

Back from the Brink?

So no government shutdown this month? Happy happy, joy joy?

It's being reported that $38.5 billion [meaning $78.5 for the total 2011 fiscal year] in spending cuts were agreed upon.

And while 800,000 federal employees across the country, the men and women of the U.S. military and their families are undoubtedly breathing a sigh of relief tonight, we don't know precisely where those billions in cuts will hit. But we do know what
Republicans have targeted–programs like Head Start, WIC, and community health care centers ... an anti-woman, anti-child, anti-poor agenda, that, oh by the way, will cause a loss of 120,000 - 450,000 jobs.

But huzzah! A bipartisan agreement has been reached. Somewhere David Broder is smiling approvingly. The people who will suffer the effects of what are sure to be draconian cuts to social safety nets? They can pound sand.

And what actually happens?

It includes cuts to both mandatory and discretionary spending, and does not include a rider that would have defunded Planned Parenthood -- the final sticking point in the negotiations. A separate measure to prevent the city of Washington from paying for abortions with its tax revenues survived. Republicans have also been promised up-or-down floor votes in the Senate on riders to defund Planned Parenthood and health care implementation.

It's a mixed bag for both sides politically. Democrats, led by Reid and President Obama, have had to accept cuts to social programs they value ideologically, and that are important to their base. Indeed, the sum of the cuts is higher than Republicans initially thought feasible. But Boehner was walking a tightrope with conservative rank and filers skeptical of any compromise -- a rift Democrats stretched to maximum benefit -- despite walking away with more fiscal flesh than anybody would have predicted six months ago.

That the government will stay open should come as little solace to Boehner -- who to his credit knew the political fallout would harm Republicans. This was a little fight. Puny even. It was the easiest test he'll face all year, and he barely passed. In just a few weeks, he'll have to convince the same petulant bloc in his party to support raising the debt limit, or force the country into default. When that's done, he'll have to run point on yet another spending fight -- to keep the government running next year. In both looming battles, Boehner will demand more spending cuts. But the remaining accounts are much larger, and they pay for programs that have defined Democrats for multiple generations of liberals -- popular entitlements like Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. The former two in particular are issues where there's no common ground between the two parties. And yet they're where all the money is.

So where do we go from here? Honestly, the choices aren't all that great.

Because Republicans run The House, and because so many Republicans have become corrupted by insani-TEA, it's not easy to negotiate in good faith. President Obama and Senator Reid are the adults in the room, but House Speaker John Boehner won't be mature about negotiating because he wants to please a bunch of unstable, deranged idiots who got elected last fall thanks to astroturf Tea Party, Inc., operations.

And even though Democrats still nominally control The Senate, nothing can really be done without at least 60 votes, so it's always easy for someone to act like a primadonna and essentially put Congress to a grinding halt. And with teabaggers there threatening to shut down the entire government over petty ideological fits, it's even more difficult to pass legislation there. It may not seem like much, but it's a huge relief to be able to placate them with separate votes on jeopardizing women's health and shoving more pollution down our throats... That will thankfully be votes assured to fail.

So what happens next? Unfortunately, millions of Americans will still suffer in some way because there are many hurtful cuts in this budget, cuts that will leave working families without help they need to survive this still rough economy. However, it could have been far worse. And moving forward, people who are angry about this budget ultimately need to realize that the only real solution lies at the ballot box. Don't like this? Well, remember to vote next year so we have a more functional Congress full of people who really want to represent us and legislate smartly!

Meanwhile on Capitol Hill...

While we have been focusing lately on the Nevada budget, there's also a massive fight brewing over the federal budget. House Republicans are already getting flak over their "job destroying budget" that would kill nearly 1,000,000 jobs if passed, likely pushing the country back into full recession. President Obama has already threatened to veto the House GOP budget if passed, and some House Democrats are now saying they have their own objections to Obama's proposed budget. Another federal government shutdown may be coming.

Wow. Looks like a full on train wreck, doesn't it?

Here's the reality of what's at stake, courtesy of Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN).



As we've talked about in regards to state issues, we need real investment in our public infrastructure. But with the House GOP's preferred budget, we'd be slashing that very investment we need and destroying the still fragile hope of sustained economic recovery. Meanwhile, neither House Republicans nor President Obama are looking at more thoughtful ways of reducing the federal budget deficit without punishing working class families for no reason.

And of course, Republicans are (mis)using the federal budget debate to continue their losing war on health care, their extreme assault on women's civil rights, their drive to make America more polluted and unhealthy, and so much more. When did the federal budget become an extreme right manifesto?



So in addition to all the madness up in Carson City, it looks like we'll be in for quite the bumper car ride in Washington. Let's see if lawmakers can put aside the ridiculous political games and agree upon some good policy.

Breakthrough?

Is this what we've been waiting for?

Dean Rhoads, the state’s senior senator, became the first Republican lawmaker to publicly break with Gov. Brian Sandoval, saying he thinks the state will need to raise taxes to balance the budget.

Rhoads, who is serving his final year in the Legislature because of term limits, told the Sun that cuts in education and social services in Sandoval’s budget are too deep.

“There will have to be deep cuts like Sandoval proposed, and tax and fee increases,” Rhoads said Tuesday. “We’re going to have to do a combination.” [...]

After a long meeting Tuesday where advocates for the mentally ill warned of service cuts under Sandoval’s budget such as specialty courts for the mentally ill, Rhoads said: “We’re basically taking wheelchairs from senior citizens.”

A 28-year veteran of the state Senate and rancher from Tuscarora, north of Elko, Rhoads said he didn’t mind being the first Republican to break ranks with Sandoval. [...]

Pro-tax forces, which include many of Nevada’s largest businesses, have expressed concern about Sandoval’s budget, but have struggled to find a strategy to override the popular governor’s promise to veto any budget that contains a tax increase.

I know, I know. It's just one, and we need at least two more in The Senate and at least two more in The Assembly to get a sensible budget passed. But hey, at least it's a start.

Hopefully, more Republicans in Carson City will listen to what we the people say and realize that Sandoval's proposed draconian cuts are simply unacceptable. These cuts hurt, and the people of this state don't need any more pain. We need a chance to heal.

Carson City Reality Check

Is it happening? Is it finally happening?

State Sen. Steven Horsford [D-Las Vegas] has broken the unofficial moratorium on frank talk about Nevada’s finances, acknowledging that additional “revenue” — read: taxes — along with spending cuts will be needed to balance the state budget in 2011.

“There has to be some combination of spending reductions and revenue to balance the budget,” he said. “It should be almost a dollar-for-dollar equation.”

This was bound to happen. Reality must now set in. All the cuts, all the gimmicks, and all the quick fixes can not put our state's fiscal house back in working order again.

And even now, I can still sense some suspension of disbelief. Horsford still thinks we can make $1.5 billion more in cuts. How? What will have to be eliminated?

He said some of the options for reducing spending include cutting the school year, eliminating programs such as health care for more than 20,000 children of the poor and dentures for seniors, and closing two state prisons. [...]

Broadening the tax base is still a priority for Horsford so state government is less dependent on gaming and sales taxes. But he also said he does not support a corporate income tax, which he had advocated in the past, calling it more volatile than he had previously thought.

Oh, I see. So let's eliminate health care for the neediest and slash the school year, too? Instead of recognize the obvious? We're the failed state of cheap!

As long as we refuse to invest what's needed in our schools, our parks, our roads, and all in all our basic infrastructure, we will never succeed as a state. And as long as our state offers a not-so-well-educated workforce and limited community services, those new businesses won't come and we will continue to be stuck, overdependent upon casinos that aren't investing as much in our state as the global gaming sector expands and new opportunities in Macau, Singapore, Eastern Europe, Mexico, and elsewhere outshine what we once had to offer.

Yep, that's the truth, whether we like it or not. We have what may end up being a $3 billion deficit in a $6.8 billion budget. What do we want to do? Wait in line even longer at the DMV as it goes from a 4 day work week to a 1 day work week? Watch our kids become even less prepared for the future as our schools close? See even more homeless people wandering Downtown because they lost their jobs and couldn't find any help afterward?

And do we want to sit by and watch the state collapse due to lack of investment, public or private? No new jobs? No new economic opportunities? No more Nevada?

It's about damned time Horsford says the obvious! But still, I hope he thinks some more about what our state really needs to get back to working order. During the boom years, we could hide our fiscal recklessness because the artificial real estate speculation "boom" was temporarily propping up our unrealistic economy and unrealistic demands (spend on whatever we want, but don't make us pay for it). Well, now our time is up and we either have to kill off our state once and for all, or FINALLY adjust to reality and figure out a way forward that will make Nevada our sustainable (in more ways than one!) home in the 21st century.

And let's face it, the only way we'll ever be able to move forward and find new opportunities is with new revenue to keep our state running. We can't afford any more cuts to vital infrastructure like schools, health care, and transportation.