FLASHREPORT

This morning I read the Governor's Weekly Address and decided that it needed a conservative response. The whole address was a "celebration" of the one-year anniversary of the federal stimulus plan. It's hardly an anniversary worth celebrating, but considering California's recent proclivity to beg the feds for more aid, I guess the influx of cash would excite government bureaucrats. 

Throughout the speech the Governor praises the virtues of massive government spending, taking credit for putting "40,000 young people into summer jobs," and delivering "650,000 warm meals to seniors." Since when is the government responsible for employing young people and doing the work performed much better by private charities? Sounds a little too much like "cradle to grave" government.

The Governor also touts the $12.8 billion "being put to work in programs to both train and fund jobs," and $13.8 billion in "programs like MediCal and unemployment." Again, when government "creates" jobs, it is not really a productive job because it doesn't produce prosperity, it requires private sector jobs to fund it. And with the growing government bureaucracy, there are fewer private sector jobs to sustain these unproductive government jobs. The fact that the state needs $13.8 billion to aid MediCal and unemployment is hardly worth bragging about.

The Governor goes on to say that despite the global economic crisis, "Californians are not sitting back and waiting for the recovery to happen." True, Californians are working hard to combat the economic downturn. But unfortunately one of the greatest hindrances to their success is the very government spending (wealth redistribution) that the Governor praises. What incentive is there for any business to remain in California when the state legislature continues to pass regulations and taxes that stifle growth? Even Amazon.com is threatening to abandon the state known for its technology innovation because of the legislature's plan to tax Internet commerce. 

In reality, the $862 billion stimulus fiasco hasn't seen a return on investment, other than redistributing wealth and growing government. 3.3 million jobs have been lost in the last year alone. In an email we sent out last week, Americans for Prosperity reminded readers that when stimulus was passed, the unemployment rate was 7.6%. President Obama promised stimulus would prevent unemployment from rising above 8%. But one year and $862 billion later, unemployment is now almost 10%.  

One year ago, California's unemployment rate was 10.1%. Now, it's risen to over 12%. Despite the Governor's spin, the numbers don't lie. Government spending doesn't help, it hinders recovery and prosperity. If California really wants to turn the state's economy around, it's time to aggressively cut taxes and regulation.