John Dunlop did not invent the pneumatic tire for a car, but for his son’s tricycle.
Day: February 10, 2016
New Wolf Budget Also Burdens Little Guy
New Wolf Budget Also Burdens Little Guy By Matthew J. Brouillette
Yesterday, Feb. 9, Gov. Wolf doubled down on his tax-and-spend agenda. Here are five facts you need to know about how Gov. Wolf’s budget would affect your family and our state:
1. It’s more of the same. Wolf’s proposed budget mirrors what he repeatedly offered—and lawmakers repeatedly rejected—last year: Massive tax hikes and record spending increases. 
2. It’s the biggest spending increase in 25 years. Wolf’s $33.3 billion General Fund budget (including pension payments) represents a 10% increase over the budget passed by the legislature in December and is the bgigest spending increase since 1991-92.
3. Wolf’s tax hike = $850 more per family four annually.
4. Wolf’s budget includes $1.1 billion more for public schools, on top of the record-high level of funding passed by the legislature in December. This comes with no accountability measures and with punitive cuts to public charter schools.
5. At least eight different tax hikes are in the budget. This includes an 11% personal income tax hike—retroactive to January 2016 (in other words, you already owe the state more taxes).
Wolf talked about ‘saving’ the taxpayers of Pennsylvania. Instead, he’s taxing us backwards and forwards.
Join us in telling Gov. Wolf, “Please, no more taxes!” Get all the budget facts—and a catchy decal—over on our site at Commonwealth Foundation.
Matthew J. Brouillette is president and CEO of Commonwealth Foundation.
Wolf New Budget Also Burdens Little Guy
Business As Usual Gets Spanked In New Hampshire
Business As Usual Gets Spanked In New Hampshire — Those OK with business as usual in Washington got a severe spanking in New Hampshire last night, Feb. 9.
In the Democrat presidential primary, socialist outsider Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont crushed Hillary Clinton 60 percent to 38 percent.
Yes Mrs. Clinton, Bernie said “live free” and you died. The whole house came down on your head. You could almost hear the little people singing “ding dong” as they danced and pointed the way to the Yellow Brick Road.
Sanders got 14 delegates to Mrs. Clinton’s nine.
Sure is a bummer to be out pandered.
On the Republican side, Donald Trump, who has never held a political office and has not even been a regular voter, easily won with 35 percent of the vote and 11 delegates. People really are that mad at the political class and they should be.
In second place, was John Kasich whose 16 percent of the vote got him three delegates. Kasich was a congressman for 22 years including six years as chairman of the House Budget Committee before declining to run for re-election in 2000. After stints as a Fox News commentator and as an investment banker, he re-entered politics in 2010 winning the Ohio gubernatorial election. He easily won re-election in 2014. His strong finish last night is being attributed to a strong debate performance.
Kasich is a native of Pennsylvania. If he should win the White House, it would the first time a native of the state held the presidency since the disgraceful James Buchanan in 1861.
Ted Cruz, who as gotten under the skin of just about every Washington insider in his first term as Texas senator, came in third with 12 percent of the vote giving him two delegates.
Getting under the skin of Washington insiders is a good thing.
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush got 11 percent of the vote which also netted him two delegates in his hopefully Quixotic quest to continue the family dynasty.
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio finished fourth with also about 11 percent of the vote but got zero delegates. He was followed by New York Gov.Chris Christie at 8 percent; businesswoman Carly Fiorina, exposure to whom the establishment media wants to minimize as she is a woman who could actually handle the job, at 4 percent; surgeon Ben Carson, at 2 percent; and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul at 1 percent despite dropping out of the race. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum got token votes despite also have dropped out.
Turnout was record-setting in the Republican race whereas it was down on the D side.
There is still a long way to go as 1,144 delegates are needed to win the GOP nomination and 2,382 are needed to lead the Democratic ticket.
Business As Usual Gets Spanked In New Hampshire