The Problems with Rick Perry

Keeping in line with my Reagan post, here are a few quick facts about Rick Perry as Governor of Texas:

- Texas state debt has more than doubled under Rick Perry. [source] Is this really the kind of "leadership" we can afford?

- Government spending has increased 79% under Perry's watch. [source] How could a principled fiscal conservative let this happen?

- He has enacted numerous tax increases, including a new business tax and taxes on tobacco products, fireworks, used cars, and diesel equipment.

- He has used the revenues from the aforementioned tax hikes to lower the property tax. This is a very shrewd political move. Let me explain why: Most people "feel" the impact of property taxes. Everyone who owns a house pays property taxes. Everyone who owns a ranch or a farm or any land pays property taxes. However, most people don't "feel" the impact of business taxes. Though business taxes still end up harming everyone by having downstream effects on production and prices, most people don't "feel" these effects because they don't have to directly pay the bill - only businesses do. Most people won't notice the slightly increased prices or slightly lower wages or slightly higher unemployment that will occur as a result. Likewise, many sales taxes, such as taxes on tobacco or used cars, are included in the price of a good sold on the retail level ( in other words consumers are not told how much tax they're paying). So what's the overall result here? Perry is creating the illusion of cutting taxes for the average taxpayer in Texas, while he is simply replacing the lost tax revenue from obvious taxes with new tax revenue from a hodgepodge of hidden taxes. One problem with this approach is that many small taxes have higher compliance costs than a single larger tax, so such a set-up creates some inefficiencies. More important, however, is that taxpayers are less aware of the price they pay for government and are thus less likely to organize themselves in order to demand lower taxes and less spending.

- A state payroll tax levied solely on business known as the "unemployment tax" has risen during Rick Perry's reign as Governor. Though this tax increase was "automatic," there was nothing blocking the Governor from doing something in order to prevent this tax increase during a recession, when such a tax would be the most harmful to the economy. The least he could do would be to cut some other tax in order to offset this increase in the unemployment tax. So why did the Governor sit idly by while twiddling his thumbs? Because he's a shrewd politician who knows that he can avoid getting blamed for an "automatic" tax increase while he does get the benefits from said tax increase - more revenues in government coffers and a lower budget deficit, which he can then boast about and claim he had something to do with.

- So, following the above, net taxes have increased, and Rick Perry cannot excuse himself by saying that those tax increases were driven by an "automatic" tax hike. [source]

- There's also the problem of the Texas DREAM Act which Rick Perry supported. The DREAM Act is a law which allows illegal immigrants living in Texas to go to college and pay in-state tuition. So, Rick Perry subsidized illegal immigrants to go to school at a cheaper rate than out-of-state US citizens. Does this make sense to even the most pro-immigration, pro-open border, and pro-welfare people? Doesn't this violate every standard of fairness one can think of?

Anyway, the bottom line is that Rick Perry has increased taxes, government spending, and state debt in Texas. So can anyone seriously argue that this guy is some Tea Party hero who will save us from the jaws of Big Government? Or is he just another shrewd politician trying to get in on the action?