|
“A
lie told often enough becomes truth.”
–Vladimir Lenin
Revisionist
history is in full swing in Virginia’s political
circles. As Gov. Mark R. Warner (D) vies to shape his
legacy, his administration and liberal sycophants
are busy rewriting history.
An
unsuspecting public has been bombarded with a
plethora of falsehoods, factual distortions and
outright lies. Many recently promoted myths have
the same common denominator: They avoid linking
Warner to the 2004 tax increase—the largest tax
increase in the history of Virginia—and
attribute it to a moderate bi-partisan majority.
Instead
they extol Warner for being a financial sage who
rescued our state government from the brink of an
economic abyss (reportedly placed in this
predicament by the irresponsible fiscal policies
pursued by the State’s previous two Republican
governors).
Having
the benefit of hindsight we can now inarguably
conclude that the 2004 tax increase was unnecessary.
Contrary to the lies promulgated during last
year’s fiscal debate, the state’s current
economic outlook makes this as plain as the light
of day.
Yet
a parroting bunch of liberal-minded munchkins are
promoting a fairy tale. They give Warner credit
for fixing the budget’s co-called “structural
imbalance.”
The
mantra goes like this: When Warner took the reins
of government, he found a budget that was facing a
multi-billion dollar shortfall—usually blamed on
Gov. Jim Gilmore’s (R) single-minded pursuit of
abolishing the car tax. Warner is given credit for
performing an economic miracle of biblical
proportions. Warner is said to have:
-
Cut
billions in spending—Not! Many credit him
with cutting $6 billion from the state budget. Yet, as
of early 2004 state spending had increased by
$2.5 billion under his watch. (See “Newspeak
in Richmond,” Feb. 16, 2004.)
-
Saved
the state from bankruptcy—Not! As we now
know the state was running a budget surplus
and was not teetering on fiscal disaster. Had
Warner not raised taxes, the Commonwealth
would have run about a $1 billion surplus instead of the current $2+ billion surplus, but
who’s counting?
-
Restructured
the budget and fixed long- lingering budgetary
imbalances—Not! Warner simply raised taxes.
The budget restructuring attributed to Warner
is nothing short of window dressing. While
certain taxes were reduced, others were raised
considerably—like the 11 percent increase in
the sales tax. Virginia’s budget continues
to be in dire need of restructuring given that
we are operating under a system put in place
more than 25 years ago.
These
facts should come as no surprise to anyone who has
followed Warner's doubletalk. Remember this Warner
memorable quote from one of the Warner vs. Earley
debates? “Mark, I think I've counted you now
saying 13 times that I'll raise taxes. You've got
that one-trick pony. It's just not going to work.
The fact is I will not raise taxes. You can say it
20 more times, but the people will know the
difference.”
Or
the many Warner campaign ads that ran in 2001
where Mr. Honesty himself repeatedly stared at the
camera and told the voters: “Let me set the
record straight: I will not raise taxes!”—I
guess it all depends on what your definition of
is, is!
Nonetheless,
because of a conspiracy of silence by the members
of the General Assembly and a friendly liberal
press, Warner continues to enjoy high job approval
ratings. If lies of this magnitude were uttered by
a Republican administration in Washington, the
Democrats would be screaming for an independent
counsel. The House and the Senate would be holding
hearings and the liberal press would be running
daily headlines concluding that a hoax of major
proportions was pulled over the eyes of the
unsuspecting public.
In
Virginia, however, all we get is a quote by House
Majority Leader, H. Morgan Griffith, R-Salem,
suggesting that "we didn't need a tax
increase that large"—implying that we
needed a tax increase in the first place. If the
Republican leaders in the House of Delegates
cannot even admit that the tax increase was
unnecessary, it proves that they were not
seriously opposed to raising taxes.
Although
some individual legislators have spoken out
against the tax increase, no one has spoken out
against the many lies propagated by Warner and his
administration. And no one has called for an
inquiry into the false budget projections used to
justify last year's gargantuan tax increase.
The
public is being duped into believing that Warner
is a moderate statesman who rescued Virginia from
fiscal catastrophe. Given the general voter apathy
and a friendly press, Warner could conceivably get
away with this myth.
On
the other hand, Warner’s aspirations for federal
office make it highly unlikely that the national
press would continue to eulogize his phony legacy.
And future opponents are probably already working
on campaign ads using Warner’s own words from
his 2001 TV spots.
Regardless
of what happens to Warner’s legacy in the
future, the fact that Warner has been able to get
away with lies of this magnitude is hard to
fathom. It only goes to show that conservative
Republicans in Richmond have no voice—or
perhaps, have no backbone.
--
August 8, 2005
|
