Veto Overrides Reveal an Unwanted and Dangerous Imbalance of Power 
By Rob Roper

There was no compromise between Republicans and Democrats over the state budget for one simple reason: Democrats didn't have to compromise, and they didn't. Speaker of the House Shap Smith and Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin have "supermajorities" in both chambers of the legislature, and they can pass whatever they like, which is exactly what they did throughout 2009. 

What did Vermonters get for bestowing unchecked power on the Democrat-run legislature? The Democrats' budget - passed over the objections of Republicans and every elected Independent -- contained $26 million in new taxes, leaves us with a $208 million deficit by 2012, and actually grows state government by over 3% on the backs of taxpayers who are already struggling to keep their heads above water. 

So-called renewable energy legislation will artificially increase the cost of electricity for all Vermonters by roughly 3%, hitting the poor the hardest, in order to pay millions of dollars in subsidies to already wealthy wind and solar developers (who just happened to donate tens of thousands of dollars to the Democrats). Likewise, Vermont's new sales tax on gas, insisted upon by Democrats, will also hit the poor the hardest, and is wired to go up automatically as prices increase, making life even tougher for those paying the bills. 

The Democrats in the legislature spent the 2009 session worrying furiously about a few hundred taxpayer funded jobs belonging to politically powerful cronies in Vermont State Employees Union and steadfastly refused to ask their politically powerful allies in the Vermont teachers' union to share any sacrifice (a modest 5% pay cut to help balance the general fund budget) along with the rest of us. Instead of focusing on the economy as they promised to do, Democrats sprung gay marriage legislation on us out of the blue, and spent a month of precious time and political energy paying off that powerful special interest group. Meanwhile, over 25,000 regular, hard working Vermonters find themselves unemployed. (Story Here)

But, is this really what a majority of Vermonters wants or expects from our state government? An unchecked left-wing taxing working people more than they are able to pay and spending money we don't have for the purposes of protecting or rewarding their political friends and benefactors? 

I would say, no. Vermonters, indeed most Americans around the country now, understand that we do not have the tax capacity to cover all the fiscal promises Democrats are making with our checkbooks. These liabilities Democrats are creating are dangerous, and people are not simply willing to spend more money on government that is out of control. We expect government to live within our means. 

Nationally, the latest Gallup poll shows a majority of Americans disapprove of Obama's spending habit. Here in Vermont, Democrats have been fond of saying that they're just "asking" Vermonters to pay more to cover their just some of their increased spending. This is a soft but profound lie. They're not asking anything; they're telling us, and confiscating our money with the force of law.

When politicians actually do "ask," the results can be seen in California where voters rejected in landslides every ballot initiative calling for more taxes and more spending on state programs. Because their politicians promised more benefits than taxpayers were willing and able to pay, today Californians (a state every bit as liberal as Vermont) are at the point of discussing the necessity of eliminating welfare entirely. (Story Here) 

Shumlin and Smith and the Democrats' budget with is $208 million dollar unfunded liability places Vermont on an equally reckless and unsustainable path. Unfortunately, until some sense of balance is restored to the House and Senate in 2010, there is no check and no way to stop Vermont Democrats and Progressives from digging us a deeper financial hole, or driving us over a taller cliff. Vermonters trusted them with total control, and now we have to live with the consequences. 

Rob Roper is the Chairman of the Vermont Republican Party