80th Legislature: GOP Spin On The Budget

I was amused this morning while checking out the House Republican Caucus’ blog to note just how they were spinning last week’s budget battle.

First, there is this post about how the budget they proposed balances “Texas priorities with fiscal responsibility.”

Here are some of their amusing talking points:

The budget – along with House Bill 2 – lives up to the promise made to hard-working Texans by fully-funding property tax cuts, and exhibits fiscal discipline by making whole the state’s Rainy Day Fund. Government growth, once tax cuts are factored in, is limited to 5.4 percent – almost two percent below the level of inflation and population growth.

Since Babblefish doesn’t have a Republican-to-Reality translator, I’ll try to do the job for you. Here’s what that really means:

The budget, combined with HB 2, lives up to the Republican campaign promise to deliver bogus, insignificant-but-to-the-rich, property tax cuts and makes us look fiscally responsible because we didn’t fully fund important programs like CHIP.

And, this:

The budget actually repositions more money into education. While the overall budget growth is 5.4 percent, the education budget, which includes incentive pay for teachers and increased money to secure the Teachers’ Retirement System, increases by 8.9 percent. An even higher percentage increase (9.2 percent) goes to higher education.

Translation:

Since the incentive pay got trashed in amendments, we don’t have much to brag about. But it sounds nice to say we’re increasing higher ed by 9.2 percent, even though our flagship universities have out-of-control tuition rates. A&M just went up 13 percent.

Talking point:

In the area of health care, the budget commits $4 million to fighting breast cancer, $1.3 billion for projected Medicaid and CHIP caseload growth, a $93.8 million boost for the state’s struggling trauma care hospitals, a $35.6 million mental health crisis stabilization program, and nearly $700 million for rate increases to medical providers serving Texans who need it most – including those in nursing homes.

Translation:

We can brag about this $1.3 billion for CHIP and Medicaid even though it isn’t enough because it sounds like a really, really, really big number. And, because we saw so many of our colleagues get defeated as a result of the CHIP cuts, we have to act like we like to support them.

I could go on but you get the idea. Then, of course, there was this lovely post:

The House has approved an amendment by Rep. Dianne White Delisi (R-Temple) to require the Texas Health and Human Services Commission to collect and report the cost of services and benefits provided to illegal immigrants.

Literally, after the bloodbath Thursday night, this was probably all they had to brag about that they actually accomplished (as opposed to merely obstructed). A massive budget, and all you have to brag about is this amendment? Oh, well. I guess it’s some red meat to the base.

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