Don't Worry -- Your Kids Will Pay For It

Imagine the following scenario: you decide to go to the Ameristar Casino one night. You have a lucky streak going, and you end up coming away with $3,000—enough to cover one or two mortgage payments. Taking that into consideration, you go into a realtor the next day and secure a home loan on a house in that $3,000 monthly payment range. This is in spite of the fact that your income cannot sustain that type of home, and the winnings are only a one-time windfall. Would that be a wise investment?

Chances are your answer is no, and you would be right—which is why it is perplexing to see our governor and many members of our General Assembly proposing long-term programs based on the recently passed one-time federal economic stimulus package. In a time where our state is facing a $300-million plus budget shortfall, it is unfortunate at best, and disturbing at worst, to watch some of my colleagues lining up to play a game of Three Card Monte with the state ledgers.

If you have followed my reports or heard me speak, it is no secret that I’m not a fan of the stimulus, as it was written and passed by Congress. That does not mean that I wish to reject the money outright. It will still come from our tax dollars, and if the money is being taken from us, it’s better that it comes back to us than to other states. But it needs to be done in a more responsible fashion. Many of these funds that some Missouri leaders are “counting on” come with strings attached—such as reforming our state unemployment compensation. It sounds nice in theory, but it would require a long-term change, and the federal government would only be providing one-time payments. It would amount to an unfunded mandate, and constitute a complete and total lack of responsibility, to accept such funds.

One-time funds should be used for improving infrastructure—building and improving our roads, investing in projects with very little cost on annual maintenance—items like that. These one-time funds should be used for construction projects that normally would not be able to be accomplished, such as looking forward to an investment in the proposed Midwest China Hub Initiative that would make St. Louis the home of a new international trade route, and truly be responsible for the creation of American jobs rather than the relocation of such jobs from state to state.

What these funds should not do, though, is saddle future generations of Missourians with a burdensome debt. Our governor was interviewed on C-SPAN recently, and had this to say:

With all due respect to Governor Nixon, I am glad those who came before us here in Missouri had the common sense to place restrictions in our state Constitution that forbid budget deficits. It is that kind of foresight and responsibility that is too lacking in today’s policitians, and it would be a real blessing to see those same qualities return to our government leaders. The federal government has already dug itself a fairly deep hole. I would advise Governor Nixon that there is no reason for Missouri to jump in as well.

It was former U.S. Senator Everett Dirksen who famously said, “A billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you’re talking about real money.” Yet in today’s environment, Senator Dirksen would be considered a cheapskate. Between the one-time costs, the recurring costs, and the interest, we have taken off on the most irresponsible spending spree in our nation’s history. But the federal government has that privilege of being distant and unaccountable to the people. Here in Missouri, we hold no such privilege, nor do we seek such. We take pride in not doing the easy thing, but instead doing the right thing. As we continue to work on hammering out responsible solutions for our state, I will continue to stand up for the 16th district and demand reasonability and accountability from those who would follow a different path.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Working With You,
Mark