Governor Bill Haslam's gas tax
increase that will enrich himself and his family passed both the
house and senate chambers Wednesday. Every Tennessean will now
be paying higher taxes for every gallon of gas they buy but
Haslam doesn't care. After all, he is the richest elected
official in the country and he and his family own one of the
largest gas station businesses in the country. It's a win, win
for him.
In reality, Haslam didn't pass
the tax hike, he didn't even have a vote. He had to depend on
his weak-kneed legislators to pass the increase and he got a
bunch of them. All the democrats but one voted for it in the
house and 37 republicans voted yes. 36 Voted no. Only 6 senators
opposed the hike.
Not surprising Haslam wanted
higher taxes, we've known for a long time he wasn't a republican
but disappointingly, at least one of our local legislators
voted to stick it to the people. Senator Randy McNally, who
represents Loudon County, voted YES on the gas tax hike with
nearly two billion dollars in the state fund balance. Both state
representatives, Jimmy Matlock and Kent Calfee, who represent
Loudon County voted NO on the hike. I guess now that McNally is
Lieutenant Governor, he felt he had more in common with Haslam
than the people he represents. That's OK, there will be another
election one day and I guarantee you, McNally has gotten the
last vote from my family he will ever get.
In a grand show of hypocrisy,
house speaker Beth Harwell also voted for the tax hike. Harwell
has announced that she plans to run for governor next year to
take over for Haslam. Harwell had pretended she was opposed to
the increase, even going to the extent to claim she had an
alternative plan that wouldn't require a tax increase. Of
course that was just a bunch of bunk to try to help her
campaign. She need not be campaigning at 568 Ford Road.
If there is any good news from
all the idiocy out of Nashville, it is that Haslam didn't get as
big of a tax increase as he wanted and what he did get will be
phased in over three years. Maybe when Haslam is gone and a
bunch of these turncoat politicians get beat, this wrong can be
righted.
I say again, it's always the ones
with money who want the ones with less to pay higher taxes.
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