By Ed Randazzo
Dusty Johnson, Governor Dennis Daugaard’s Chief of Staff, visited Rapid City yesterday and spoke to the Ambassadors Club meeting at the Holiday Inn.
In most effective fashion, Dusty reminded the assemblage of the Governor’s budget proposal. Governor Daugaard has commited to balance the budget and eliminate the structural deficit in one year without the use of state reserves, one-time money or increasing taxes.
Since revenue is declining, the only way to accomplish this is to make the significant cuts across the board in expenditures he has proposed. This includes cuts in the education and Medicaid budget.
Governor Daugaard’s proposed budget is courageous in that no one likes to cut budgets and there will be hard choices to make to accomplish this. But it is absolutely essential that the State of South Dakota live within its means. We cannot continue to spend money we do not have.
Increased taxation is not the answer. We are taxed enough already and increasing taxes will only enable the ever-increasing size of government.
Our legislators in Pierre have been, and will continue to be, deluged with communication from those whose budgets will be cut. Now is the time for us to remind our legislators of our support for the Governor’s proposed budget.
Please call, write or email your senator and your representatives and ask them to make the state live within its means.
Phone messages are effective: You can call and leave a message for your senator or representative at (605) 773-3851. Your message can be as simple as “Please ask _________ to stand firm and support Governor Daugaard’s proposed budget.”
For those in Pennington County, there is a Crackerbarrel meeting on Saturday at the School of Mines in Rapid City at 9AM. Please attend and support the fiscal responsibility of our state.
I salute Governor Daugaard and appreciate his commitment to fiscal responsibility.
Why is it Dusty always looks like he is only 16 years old. Looks can be deceiving. A whole bunch of people. Tea party, wing nuts, Conservatives,And others dont have a clue what is about to hit them. Once we get a little closer to the end of session the left wingers,Whiners, and spenders will come out of the woodwork.The onslaught will be unbelievable. Have you read Saturdays paper? Expect to see a lot more only worse and much more senseless. Did you hear Frankernfeld on the radio. “Rapid City will lose a thousand jobs”. How nuts is that? I agree with Razzi we need to help the Gov. as much as we can.
Agreed, Bill. As specifics emerge about budget cuts the whiners will take to the streets aided and abetted by the media. We’ll hear about how many children will die and how the children will not be educated. The plain fact is: WE CANNOT SPEND MONEY WE DON’T HAVE!!! The rosy scenarios will begin spouting that revenues are increasing and the crisis will pass if we just wait one more year. No quarter will be given to the possibility that Washington’s largesse will stop soon. Then what? We MUST MUST MUST cut spending now!!!