Springfield acts like it's Washington
One of the reasons people usually respect state legislators more than congressmen is a state official can always profess to being fiscally responsible -- unlike those wastrels in Washington.
Whether conservative, moderate or liberal, American officials at the state level have always had to find some way to balance the state budget.
States can't just print more money, as they do in Washington. Generally speaking, states simply aren't allowed the option.
Unfortunately, Gov. Blagojevich and his cronies in the Democratic majorities in Springfield have found creative ways to legally borrow and spend just like the Congresses of Tip O'Neill and Nancy Pelosi.
Besides the raising of exorbitant business fees that have driven so many companies out of our state, Springfield's Democrats have found new ways to rob next year's budget, to finance routine day-to-day expenses with long-term bonds and to brazenly raid existing investments such as pension funds.
Since the current administration took office in 2003, Illinois' bonded debt has more than doubled -- from $9 billion to $20 billion.
On a party-line vote, the Democrat majority in the Illinois state senate just voted to add yet another whopping $16 billion in bond debt to that already outrageous debt.
Who do they think they are -- Washington, D.C.?
All this, in a time when economic growth, even when a little sluggish, is still bringing in more revenue to Springfield every year.
Our government isn't hurting for tax dollars; it's hurting for wisdom, for management skills, for good old-fashioned restraint.
I'm proud to be in the district represented by Sen. Matt Murphy, one of the conservatives fighting the good fight in Springfield against this latest example of fiscal sleight-of-hand.
While Gov. Blagojevich, Senate Majority Leader Emil Jones, and Speaker of the House Mike Madigan are spending us into bankruptcy, the Republican minority is doing its best to bring the truth to light and to limit the damage an irresponsible liberal majority can do.
If we want to cure our budget woes this November, the prescription for Illinois voters is clear: Cut back on the Madigans and Joneses, and load up on the Matt Murphys.
John F. Di Leo
Palatine