kpete (37,152 posts)
Republicans should be terrified-What California looks like now is what the entire USA will look like
SUN NOV 11, 2012 AT 06:45 PM PST
Golden results in the Golden State: Democrats dominate California
by Dante Atkins
?1352444286
Republicans woke up on Wednesday morning to survey the damage, in few places could it be considered more horrifying than it was in California. With but few exceptions, progressive candidates and ideologies dominated California races on election night and handed stunning defeats to conservative candidates and their billionaire backers.
The "tax revolt" is over. Nearly a quarter-century ago, during Jerry Brown's first stint in the Governor's Mansion, California voters passed Proposition 13. In addition to limiting the growth of property taxes on both residential and commercial property, Proposition 13 dictated that any bill to pass taxes must be approved by a two-thirds vote of both legislative bodies. The passage of Proposition 13 hailed the beginning of the so-called "tax revolt"—a voter rebellion against the fact that property taxes had doubled in a 10-year period as a result of rising property values. But on Tuesday night—with Jerry Brown once again serving as governor—the tax revolt ended. Voters approved Gov. Brown's tax measure, Proposition 30, by an eight-point margin, even though the most reliable polling indicated that the measure could well have been headed for defeat. The effects are already being felt. The measure will raise taxes on high income earners to fund education, and as a result of its passage, the California State University system has already rescinded the most recent tuition increase it passed for the fall semester. Elections have consequences. Additionally, voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition 39, which eliminates a tax loophole for big businesses and uses the revenue to fund green energy projects.
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The Bottom Line: Republicans should be terrified. What California looks like now is what the entire United States will look like in the future, and it is a world in which Republicans cannot win. California is done with the conservative ideology of tax revolts, and they are done with Republican politicians at the ballot box. Nov. 6 was a golden day for Democrats in the Golden State.
MORE:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/11/11/1158501/-Golden-results-in-the-Golden-State-Democrats-dominate-California?detail=hide
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324894104578106941506837334.html
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10021794969They have one thing right, we are terrified of what is happening in CA and we are terrified of the whole country becoming like that.
They have been watching how CA is falling apart and how they need to keep raising taxes and how businesses are fleeing the state. Do they really want that for the whole country? Only an idiot would be watching this unfold then think that expanding this to the whole country is a good thing.
Sekhmets Daughter (1,286 posts)
1. But what is truly amazing is that they voted to raise the Sales Tax! CA
has always been the leader...if must be those great Pacific breezes.
Or the choom smoke clogging their brains.
Warpy (65,457 posts)
6. Raising the sales tax is doubleplus ungood
It's a regressive, economy killing tax that will likely be repealed once the fat cats have gotten more used to paying their fair share.
Prop 13 needs to be modified to take inflation into account. Freezing property taxes has simply starved the government into near uselessness. California deserves better now that most of the tax whiners who got it passed are in nursing homes.
Progressive taxation is the only real way to run a government that is efficient and can afford to be humane. The most fortunate among us need to pay for their vast privilege.
Sekhmets Daughter (1,286 posts)
10. Well, the people don't agree with you.
They voted to raise the sales tax 0.25% from 7.25% to 7.50%... it did not come out of the legislature. Now, i don't know if they tax things like clothing in CA, NJ doesn't but FL does... but the people seem to think they can handle it. Americans seem to think that everyone's taxes should go up, except theirs. It would appear that the people of CA believe in everyone carrying a bit of the burden. Prop 13 was a mistake from its inception...it bankrupted the state and ruined what was the best system of higher education in the world and the most affordable.
It is you goons who think everyone's taxes should go up but your own. We think that everyone is taxed enough already. But keep going down this road and watch how fast this country declines even further.
CaliforniaPeggy (100,126 posts)
2. We Democrats do need to be careful, however.
We now possess a super-majority in our legislature, which means we can pretty much do what we want.
But the voters can snatch that away from us if we abuse our power.
Plus, since we have all that power, we will be to blame if things don't turn out the way we anticipate.
Let's not get crazy, even though I suspect we'd love to do that.
We have wandered a long time in the wilderness.....now it's the Republicans' turn.
Taxing the hell out of the rich, how could that possibly go wrong? Taxing businesses until they fold or leave the state, what possible consequnces could that have? So please dems feel free to do what you want.
jaysunb (7,732 posts)
11. We need to show leadership.
With Democrats firmly in control of all levers of government, it's imperative that we show the country what democratic ideas look like in real time. We can shout progressive values from the rooftops but people do what they see more often than what they hear.
And, may Howard Jarvis and Paul Gann continue to rot in hell !!
CA is going down. You idiots actually think that you don't need the rich and if they pack up and move good riddance, well just wait until you have no one left to tax, then what are you going to do?
Just wait until next year when the new federal tax rates start up, the new surprise taxes from 0bamacare, and state taxes all go up.
