Posted on 01/09/2008 10:12:36 PM PST by lesser_satan
When questioned about tax raises during his tenure as Governor, Huckabee and his supporters always say he had no choice, it was mandated, it was for education and roads, etc.
Can anybody explain this: http://www.arkansas.gov/dfa/accounting/documents/2006_arkansas_cafr-web_version.pdf
According to this doc, under Huckabee’s tenure as gov, spending on Health and Human Services (aka welfare!) in Arkansas went from $2.44 billion in 1997 to $4.65 billion in 2006, a 92% increase. (see pages 130-131 of the .pdf file). Education increased from $1.81 billion in 1997 to 3.04 billion in 2006 (a 68% increase), but transportation spending actually decreased from $677 million in 1997 to $320 million in 2006, a 53% decrease!
But he's a good Christian, so 'sall good. After all, I dare not question a guy who talks about Jesus every other breath. That would make me a Christian-basher!
Thanks. This will be useful.
Ping!
My pleasure!
BTW, could somebody please double check my numbers?
Which candidate do you like the LEAST?
They’re honestly quite difficult to read via your png links.
Go to the .pdf link, it’s much better.
It’s weird because I like McCain the least but I have a feeling I would prefer to vote for him over Huckabee.
Here’s a new one to add to the excuses:
Huckabee said ungiving individuals are responsible for higher taxes.
“I’m often asked why taxes are so high and government is so big. It’s because the faith we have in local churches has become so small. If we’d been doing what we should have — giving a dime from every dollar to help the widows, the orphans and the poor — we now wouldn’t be giving nearly 50 cents of every dollar to a government that’s doing ... what we should have been doing all along.”
http://www2.arkansasonline.com/news/1998/jun/08/huckabee-us-gave-religion/
Honestly, if either of them get the nomination we're screwed, and we're probably screwed worse if one of them actually wins the election.
Yeah I heard that on Jason Lewis’ show. What a joke.
Note that most of that increase in spending went to food stamps and Medicaid. Note also that the numbers participating ballooned.
My question is this, is all that due to Fed welfare reform, or from illegals coming to Arkansas and coming on welfare? I say that because when Jim Holt tried to get a Prop 200 law passed require ID for welfare and to vote, Huck FREAKED and told everyone how unchristian and uncompassionate it was to deny illegals welfare.
Because, we know Tyson was bringing illegals in to work them in their chicken plants and get cheap labor. Huck was tight with Tyson and was even investigated by ICE for aiding and abetting, plus the whole Mexican consulate thing, to name a few.
If the increase in the welfare budget is due to illegals, then basically Huck used the Arkansas taxpayers to subsidize cheap wages for Tyson, which is near criminal in my mind.
WOW — that is fantastic research. Thank you very much for digging up the definitive numbers.
Bttt!
Well -- there is nearly a first!
A Huckabee slammer who admits that federal welfare reform (and other sloughing off of the "social safety net") affects state budgets!
Even in Arkansas?
You can thank Free Vulcan. He found it, I just did the math.
You are more than welcome to prove that it was due to welfare reform. You have proved nothing at this point.
Welfare reform was 10 years ago, and participation numbers keep ballooning. You would figure people cut off the fed dole would have switched years ago.
There is ample evidence of Huck complicity with illegals and Tyson. Those in Huck Denial are getting lulled to sleep with his constant mantra of ‘Jeeeezuz’.
I read through the report and I see personal income went up 63%, unemployment went down, the state population grew and the state was in better fiscal shape at the end of the ten year period than they were at the beginning. The transportation spending decrease was the result of completing road projects and not needing as much. Government employeement grew at the same rate as the state population. Homicides went down as did total criminal investigations. Per capita personal income grew 30% and the unemployment rate went down. I read through this and I see a state that spent money, but had a balanced budget. I would say Huckabee left the state in much better shape than he found it.
If everybody was doing so well (and I agree that they probably were), who did they need to increase HHS spending for?
Answer: The hordes of illegal aliens that Huckabee, Klintoon, and their masters at Tyson created a sanctuary state for.
Moaning and groaning about Mike Huckabee is not going to change anything. Rush Limbaughism has paralyzed the conservative movement. Instead of conservatives getting out there and running for office, they all sit back and blow bags of gas on all the candidates, while nothing changes. Why doesn’t Free Republic start putting real pressure on Rush Limbaugh, who talks a great game, to put up or shut up, and get into this race. He could easily garner the money and support needed to make a third party run. No excuses, no what if, no blah blah this or that. Just do it Rush! Then, as President, he could actually put his ideas and principles into action. If he does, I’ll support him. Quit sitting on the sidelines Rush, and get into the game! And if he doesn’t win, so what, he has laid the foundation for somebody else, or run in the next election. At least he gave it a shot, and put his imprint on the race, which is much more effective than sitting behind a mic every day, and keeping the Reagan conservatives sound asleep.
If he isn’t going to do that, than at least ask he can encourage his audience to pray everyday for all the candidates, that God would lead them into making the best decisions for the country. For a guy who claims his talent is on loan from God, he sure doesn’t encourage his audience very often to ask for Divine guidance and intervention on behalf of our country, and our leaders. Instead, he keeps playing soft violin music, while the Republican party drifts farther and farther left under his “great” voice.
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