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Doyle’s Funny Budgeting

Lance Burri points out that Governor Doyle is exaggerating Wisconsin’s budget deficit. 

See, Governor Doyle is calculating the “deficit” as if the agency requests are a done deal. As if state agencies will get everything they want, simply by having asked for it.

They won’t, or they shouldn’t. If Governor Doyle simply says “no budget increases,” then boom. Over half the “deficit,” wiped out. Fell swoop.

Sure, what’s left is still pretty big, but it’s not unprecedented. It’s not historic. It’s not entirely ridiculous in its size.

So why, do you suppose, is Governor Doyle out trumpeting the bigger, scarier number? It’s as though he wants a historically, ridiculously enormous deficit.

In fact, he probably does.

Posted by Owen at 0739 hrs
Politics + Politics - Wisconsin

1. Of course he wants the bigger number.

   First, if he denies all the agency requests, he can say, “See? I eliminated half of the deficit.”  And second, if he can’t eliminate the other half, he can say, “We’ve cut to the bone, we can go no further without placing children and old people in harms’ way - we have no other option but to raise taxes.”

   And, as usual, the media will buy it hook, line and sinker, and heap gobs of praise on the Democrats for “solving” the budget deficit without harming those two constituencies. 

   It’s the old Lake Monona two-step.

   Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 25, 2008 at 1234 hrs
   
   
   

2. If you missed the Doyle press conf on 11-20 on the budget (yawn) you can see it on Wis Eye (yarwn again).

   I will save you the pain and tell you to fast forward to the Q and A at 22.48 on the ticker and even though you can’t make out the question the answer at 22.57 says the deficit for the current budget is $344 million.  Doyle calls that “manageable” and I would have to agree. 

   But he also says he wants to consult with legislative leaders before submitting a budget and is sticking to his big scary numbers game.

   But lets see here now.  Let us not abandone our state budget process just because its now fashionable to race to the podium with a “Me too…owie owie owie” story.

   Its DOYLE"S job to bring TO the Legislature and public a budget that works. The budget starts with the governor thats how it has always gone.  Doyle has to do his job and provide leadership here. 

   The budget starts and ends with the governor-thats how it works.

   Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 25, 2008 at 1326 hrs
   
   
   

3. I’d like to see one of the economists write a piece in the WSJ on this, dissect it, and show all the smoke and mirrors that are being used, so that no matter which path is taken, Gov. Doyle comes out looking like a hero.

   :zzdeadhorse:

   Posted by hsgbdmama on November 25, 2008 at 1341 hrs
   
   
   

4. The media will of course let Doyle off the hook.  They practiced that during the Obama campaign.

   Besides big numbers and panic and despair are more attractive to the media than “manageable” deficits and achievable solutions. 

   Tightening the belts of state spending and solving the current budget defict and then sitting down with the cabinet and cutting and I mean really cutting spending is something that will not get Doyle noticed by the Obama team or major newspapers. 

   This is a test of Doyle’s leadership and he is failing miserably.

   Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 25, 2008 at 1413 hrs
   
   
   

5. This has been standard policy since PaT Lucey did it after he beat Jack Olson in 1970.
     Right after the election he claimed a 200 million dollar shortage. budgets were only around a million at that time.
     He then proved what a great governor that he would be by solving the crisis that he created.
     More silly stuff and the presse eats it up instead of really analyzing it.
     Todd Berry is right.

   Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 26, 2008 at 1935 hrs
   
   
   

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