Yesterday, after a 133-day faceoff, the Virginia Senate blinked first. Unfortunately, for now, the right-wing Republican-controlled House of Delegates got its wish: there will be no new taxes. Unfortunately for the rest of us, there will be no mass transit or roads either. In other words, the end result of having a Republican-controlled House and Senate in Virginia has come down to this: gridlock today, gridlock tomorrow, gridlock forever. Here's some reporting and commentary from today's papers on this sorry situation (bolding added for emphasis):Richmond Times Dispatch: "The Virginia Senate yesterday surrendered on new taxes for transportation, likely averting a government shutdown but reducing chances of a long-term fix for roads and transit."
Richmond Times Dispatch: "Without new taxes or fees, there will be virtually no additional sustained revenue for transportation, funding for which was last overhauled 20 years ago before gridlock gripped Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads."
Washington Post: "It is Mr. Kaine's misfortune that he is up against a House Republican leadership more intent on giving him a black eye than on addressing the state's grievous long-term transportation problems."
Washington Post: "Virginia's transportation funding crisis is real, long term and urgent; it will not disappear just because Republican hard-liners in the House of Delegates are allergic to raising taxes. In other words, Mr. Kaine's cause has been deferred, not defeated."
Washington Post: "...here's a prediction: Virginia voters will be in no mood to forgive the Republican ideologues in the House who are starving the state's most economically dynamic regions of their lifeblood -- decent roads and free-flowing traffic."
Washington Times: " Sens. Richard L. Saslaw and Janet D. Howell, both Fairfax Democrats, voted against the revised bill in committee. "It abandons Northern Virginia to an endless traffic jam," Mrs. Howell said..."
That's right, an "endless traffic jam" caused by right-wing Republican intransigence and rigid anti-taz ideology. In 2007, the voters of Virginia need to remember - as they sit stewing in traffic - who did this to them. And it wasn't Tim Kaine or the Democrats, that's for sure!
Right-wing Conservatives across Virginia will hail this as triumph of the no-tax dogma, but it's really more of the same decaying roads and ignorant children ignorance of which George Allen is the standard bearer.
Right wing conservatism continues to fail America and Virginia. A vote for any House Republican or George Allen is a vote for weaker nation.
You don't need to look any farther than this to see the disaster right-wing conservatism has been for us all.
However, people when they are in their comfy chair at home relaxing on the weekend.... think the raise is a bad idea, because of their own pocketbook!