To get into the mind of a leftist, you have to assume that: a) he’ll do anything to get more tax revenues; b) that his tack will involve self-contradiction and want of principle; and c) where principle ever lived in him, only envy, guilt and indignation remain.
Let’s focus on some exemplars of b) convenient self-contradition. Here’s Chris Fitzsimon touting the virtues of a state-wide referendum on allowing the counties to impose transfer taxes:
Berger also says that there is no way a majority of the Senate will support the transfer tax option until “the public expressly agrees that they want an option to impose a transfer tax in order to keep annual property tax rates stabilized.” Isn’t that why referenda are held in the first place, to see how the public expressly feels about an issue?
Now consider another issue in which a referendum doesn’t suit his agenda:
That must mean that Underhill opposes the lottery. Well no, she says she is committed to support a referendum because her constituents want it. But North Carolina is not an initiative and referendum state. There is a strong argument to be made that a referendum is unconstitutional. Legislators are supposed to make laws and budget decisions. Underhill’s constituents would probably want to vote on a lot of things, tax hikes, university tuition, providing health care to more people, but that’s the way our government works.
How convenient. Now, here’s the N.C. League of Municipalities (Ellis Hankins) engaged in the same game:
The Realtors are doing all of this (lobbying and advertising) to keep North Carolinians from having the right to vote on a local transfer tax…" Also, "At the state level, we need to let people vote on bond proposals for schools, clean water, transportation, land and water conservation and affordable housing for seniors and others. The General Assembly also should let the people vote on alternate ways to get these public facilities built.
Isn’t the N.C. League of Municipalities the same group who advocates forced annexation, insisting that opponents of involuntary annexation "…don’t want a vote, they want a veto"?
-Max Borders (hat tip Chris Hayes)
These guys Fitzsimon and Hankins are unbelievable phonies. Hankins does everything he can to block citizen input on annexation and then he demands a local option transfer tax. Fitzsimon seems bent on being a waterboy for higher taxes and making housing less affordable. If you can actually read his columns without retching, it’s disturbing how much venom he has for the housing industry. He must have some real personal issues, Oh yeah, Fitzsimon was against a referendum when it came to a lottery but now he’s all about letting the people vote instead of letting legislators do what they were elected to do. Maybe we should just call him Simple Simon.