Looks like the Republicans are signaling obstruction already. You heard that here first, but, honestly, you knew that they were going to do this anyway, didn't you?
That is all they can say. Cut. Keep cutting. Not gonna say what we will cut, we will just say cut. Cut, cut, cut.
You didn't need all that education, health care, police and fire protection, did you? Really? Well, too bad. Dick DeVos needs another tax cut.
LANSING, Mich. -- Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop on Tuesday criticized suggestions that Michigan raise taxes to alleviate a potential $800 million budget deficit and added that the state's next business tax should bring in less revenue.
Bishop, R-Rochester, said he opposes Democratic Gov. Jennifer Granholm's stance that a replacement plan for the Single Business Tax, which expires at year's end and generates $1.9 billion a year, be revenue neutral. She has said the state must replace all the money or face deep cuts to education, health care and other services.
"What they're asking us to do is replace a tax with a tax, which I think is unacceptable," Bishop told reporters after speaking to the Lansing Regional Chamber Economic Club. "It doesn't solve the problem. It only fans the flames and treats the symptoms."
Did Mike mention that we have already cut $3 billion out of state government? That we have fewer state employees than we did in 1973? That state and federal tax cuts since 1999 have amounted to nearly $1.9 billion? That doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results is the definition of insanity? Did he mention that part?
He didn't sound any warmer about the idea of lowering the overall sales tax rate but expanding the tax to services such as movie tickets and dry cleaning, something some groups and economists have supported.
"It's not an option for us right now," Bishop said. "We've got to find a way to rein in government. A tax on services and all the other proposals that we've heard simply don't position Michigan for the future and really are a further impediment to our success in the future."
Bishop said Senate Republicans will unveil their own SBT replacement plan in coming weeks.
Whoa, stop the presses. This is a shocking development.
The Republicans, who said they would work on this starting back in 2004, fiddled around throughout all of 2005 until they nixed a plan at the last minute that would have significantly lowered the SBT rate (just think, they would have had their precious business tax cut in effect for a year now), said they would work on it in early 2006, changed their minds in 2006 because it was "too hard during an election year", canned the SBT in September anyway and said they would work on it after the election, then decided they couldn't do it after the election during the lame duck because they didn't have enough time, are now finally going to release their plan "in the coming weeks".
Yeah. Glad you guys have made this such a priority. The care and concern you have shown on this issue so far tells me just where you are going in the future; insist on more breaks for the wealthy, throw those poor and sick folk in the street, and if we don't get our way we will just stick our heads in the sand and obstruct progress for the whole state. Collect accolades from our masters at the Mackinac Center, get healthy campaign contributions from the only people our philosophy serves.
How is that working out for you now, Michigan?
Republicans are the party that represents the elite few, and it seems they are hell-bent on screwing over the many. Can't wait to see the list of people they intend to sacrifice in the name of "more tax cuts".