America, Don’t Say We Didn’t Warn You

02/18/2008

McCain Adopts “No-New-Taxes” Mantra; Pawlenty’s Adherence to Pledge Failed Minnesota on Transportation and Property Taxes


St. Paul, MN (February 18, 2008) After Senator McCain said this weekend that there will be no new taxes during his would-be administration, the DFL Party said today that Governor Pawlenty’s adherence to the do-nothing, no-new-taxes policy failed Minnesota, by sacrificing the state’s transportation infrastructure and shifting the burden of paying for government services onto Minnesota homeowners.

“Minnesotans know first-hand what happens when politics are put ahead of doing the right thing: roads and bridges crumble, and property taxes skyrocket. And those signs of a faltering government are about the only things that Governor Pawlenty has accomplished in Minnesota,” said Minnesota DFL Chair Brian Melendez.

“Senator McCain’s commitment to the disastrous something-for-nothing, no-new-taxes policy, and his support of Bush’s misguided tax breaks that put corporations and the wealthiest ahead of average working Americans, show that McCain offers nothing but a third Bush term,” continued Melendez.

America, Don’t Say We Didn’t Warn You:

One Day After He Adopts No-New-Taxes Policy, George H.W. Bush Endorses McCain. “Republican John McCain says there will be no new taxes during his administration is he is elected president … McCain told ABC’s ‘This Week’ that under no circumstances would he increase taxes, and added that he could ‘see an argument, if our economy continues to deteriorate, for lower interest rates, lower tax rates, and certainly decreasing corporate tax rates…’ [Star Tribune (AP), 2/17/08; 2/18/08]

McCain Flip-Flopped, Now Committed to President Bush's Budget Busting Tax Cuts for the Wealthy. “Then, McCain assured conservatives that he would support making permanent the Bush tax cuts, which would otherwise expire during the next president's first term. This was a tricky dance for a straight-talker, given that he had voted against those very tax cuts. McCain explained that his position was perfectly consistent because, while he may have opposed the tax cuts in the first place, letting them expire would amount to a tax hike; and, he said, "I've never voted for a tax increase in twenty-four years ... and I will never vote for a tax increase, nor support a tax increase.” [The New Republic, 2/10/08]

MINNESOTA FACT: Wealthiest 1% of Minnesotans Will Receive 31% of the Bush Tax Cuts. According to Citizens for Tax Justice, from 2001-2010, the wealthiest 1% of Minnesotans, who had an average income of $1.16 million in 2006, will receive 31.1% of the Bush tax cuts. Meanwhile, the poorest 60% will get only 19.7% of the tax cuts. Their annual tax cut over the 10 years will average only $459, while the average tax cut for the wealthy totals more than $42,000 a year. [Citizens for Tax Justice, 10/10/06]

Pawlenty Denied Property Tax Relief for 90 Percent of Homeowners with Veto Pen. “With Tuesday's veto, Pawlenty said no to direct property tax relief for 90 percent of the state's homeowners, in order to allow the state's top 28,000 earners to keep paying an effective tax rate lower than the one borne by middle earners - and dropping by the year … The Republican governor's veto was no surprise. But it is deeply disappointing. It keeps Minnesota on a road toward more regressive taxation.” [Star Tribune, 5/17/07]

Pawlenty “Roadblock” on Transportation. “The transportation bill got 137 votes in the Legislature this session. That's a solid 70 percent majority and, if you believe in representative government, pretty good evidence that Minnesotans are willing to pay for fixing their crumbling roads and expanding their skimpy transit systems … But Tim Pawlenty isn't willing. And so, for the second time in three years, a veto, wielded by a governor who has never been elected by a majority of Minnesotans, has prevented substantial progress against the state's most gnawing problem: the 20-year failure to adequately build and maintain its transportation system.” [Star Tribune, 5/25/07]

Minnesota in Recession; Loses 23,000 Jobs in Six Months. “Minnesota's unemployment rate climbed to 4.9 percent in December, up from 4.4 percent the month before. The loss of 2,300 jobs last month capped a string of job losses, 23,000 in all, over the last six months … That's the worst string of jobs numbers since the 2001 U.S. economic downturn. ‘Minnesota is in a recession,’ said Minnesota state economist Tom Stinson. "I don't see how you can label it anything else.’” [Star Tribune, 1/15/08]

Property Taxes Rose 70 Percent Since 2002; Cuts in Local Aid to Blame. According to a report by Minnesota 2020, the average Minnesota homestead property tax has increased by approximately 70 percent from 2002 to 2008. Even after adjusting for inflation in government purchases, the average homestead property tax increase has been nearly 30 percent. The primary cause of homestead property tax increases from 2002 to 2008 is cuts in state aid to local governments. Local governments have struggled to make up for the loss of state aid through a combination of cuts in public services, reductions in infrastructure investment, and increases in property taxes. [“Sticker Shock: Why Property Taxes are Going Through the Roof in Minnesota,” Minnesota 2020, 2/10/08]

Department of Transportation Will Run Billions Short for Road Projects. According to a report by KARE-TV, MnDOT “is already reporting that current funding projections show they will be a $23 billion shy of what they need to hit performance goals in Minnesota over the next 23 years.” [KARE 11, 11/27/07]

Met Council Agrees: Underfunding Transportation Endangers Quality of Life. According to the Pawlenty-appointed Metropolitan Council, “Funding at current levels will result in significant increases in traffic congestion, delaying the movement of people and goods, reducing the region’s economic competitiveness and harming our quality of life.” [Minnesota 2020, 1/2/08]