NEWS UPDATES
Raise Taxes to Boost Tourism? The New Math
Scottsdale and Tempe are asking voters to approve 16% bed tax rate hikes in order to boost tourism. Seriously. Here's a quote from the Yes on 200 (Scottsdale) website: "The additional bed-tax revenue generated from Proposition 200 will lead to more marketing of...
Reprinted from the Wall Street Journal’s Political Diary
Pot and Kettle to Do Battle in Arizona John McCain has finally drawn a challenger in the Republican primary that will decide if he gets a fifth term in the U.S. Senate. Mr. McCain is likely untouchable in a general election, but the smaller GOP electorate is...
Fees? Who Needs Fees?
Just when you thought the federal government had too much on their plate comes news that the Federal Reserve will implement new rules prohibiting banks from charging overdraft fees without consumers' consent. I always figured that a bank charged a stiff penalty for...
Astroturf Elections
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters this morning that the election results were not a referendum on President Obama. He said, “People didn’t go to the polls to register support for, or opposition to, the President.” He said the elections were purely...
Government Milestones
In the Sunday, Oct. 17 edition of the Arizona Republic there was a column on "creating" the new Arizona economy. It made the usual argument that we don't subsidize enough cool stuff to have a "knowledge" economy, but that wasn't the good part. Along side this story...
A Dose of Reality on GDP Growth
The White House is cheering today's news that GDP last quarter was up 3.5%. But they're also cautious not to get too excited. They know they goosed the numbers a bit. It's no secret that the government can artificially boost economic activity. Take, for example, the...
The Left Suffers from Majority Syndrome
When the GOP had control of the WH and Congress, fissures occurred in the Party over issues like immigration, government spending, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Divisions in the Party aren't always bad because a Party that stands for something is by nature...
Rasmussen Poll: Majority of Arizonans think government spending is a problem
In yet another poll on the 2010 Governor's race, we found this nugget: Seventy-six percent (76%) say the unwillingness of politicians to control government spending is a bigger problem in the state than the unwillingness of voters to pay enough in taxes. Just 17% say...
You Don’t Mess With Jon Kyl
Don't blame me for the typo on Kyl's last name - I just linked to the clip. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlDKeMcBwFM&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0]
TIME Initiative vs. Governor’s Sales Tax Referral
On the Senate floor yesterday (during the doomed referral, and then combined referral and tax package votes), a conservative lawmaker questioned how those who had been opposed to the TIME ballot initiative last election cycle could now support the tax package that...
HELP Wanted: Green Jobs
The Club was one of only two groups opposed to SB1403, income and property tax subsidies for renewable energy manufacturers. We were outgunned about 25-1 with hordes of lobbyists from economic development groups, cities, and government agencies pushing the bill. The...
Sound Political Vote
Because you can't separate politics from policy making, some votes are just downright tough. You can't be in a position to cast a vote unless you survive the political process by getting elected in the first place, so all votes are considered through a political lens,...