The editors of the Washington Times hit the nail squarely on the head, and by example embarrass their cross-town rivals. Here are the choice cuts from their blistering editorial:
At times, it seems as if the governor, Senate Majority Leader Dick Saslaw, Fairfax Democrat, and House Republicans led by Speaker Bill Howell are competing to see who can take “credit” for pushing through the worst possible package of tax increases on the people of the commonwealth.
As far as I know, the Times in the only paper to see through the madness and put the pox on all taxes. Meanwhile, those of us on the Jeff Frederick watch wil be happy to see his mention here (emphasis added):
Mr. Kaine’s proposal to spend $1 billion annually through increases in the motor-vehicle sales tax, higher registration fees and sales tax increases in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads was bottled up in the Republican-controlled House. Mr. Saslaw was successful in pushing his plan for a 6-cent increase in the state gasoline tax through the Senate on a largely party-line vote, but it has little chance of winning approval in the House. Unfortunately, however, senior Republicans in the House will put forward an alternative pushed by Delegates Phillip Hamilton of Newport News and David Albo of Fairfax that would provide new road funding through a series of increases in taxes and fees.
This is a terrible idea – a point being made by more sober-minded Republicans. State party Chairman Jeffrey Frederick, a Prince William County delegate, told editors and reporters at The Washington Times yesterday that the House tax increases were poor public policy and would hurt the Republican Party. Sen. Ken Cuccinelli, Fairfax Republican, warns that GOP lawmakers who support tax increases could run into the same problems Republicans faced in supporting Gov. Mark Warner’s $1.4 billion tax increase in 2004 (only to learn several weeks later that the deficit Mr. Warner warned about was fiction, and that Virginia had a budget surplus.) Mr. Howell would do well to heed the warnings from Mr. Frederick and Mr. Cuccinelli.
Indeed, Howell should heed those warning; sadly, he won’t. Still, it’s good to see that the folks in Northern Virginia will get to hear from the voices of reason.
[...] peddled the original version of HB6055. I would also submit he likely pushed the editors toward the scathing editorial they published [...]
[...] takes on the tax hikers - again Less than two weeks after joining us in taking on the tax-hikers in his own party (and, I should add, helping us beat them), Jeff Frederick takes aim at the Democrats in the [...]
[...] flooding my comment section in 3 . . . 2 . . . 1 . . . but as Party Chairman, Jeff Frederick made it clear in that all-important summer of 2008 that any attempt to bring back the tax-hikes of HB3202 would not be acceptable in the party. [...]
[...] flooding my comment section in 3 . . . 2 . . . 1 . . . but as Party Chairman, Jeff Frederick made it clear in that all-important summer of 2008 that any attempt to bring back the tax-hikes of HB3202 would not be acceptable in the party. [...]