Gov. Bobby Jindal’s administration is quietly notifying legislative leaders that Louisiana closed the books on the last budget year with a deficit, but the administration isn’t saying publicly how deep the problem is.Jindal claims to have balanced the budget every year he's been in office, but I can't remember a year when the Jindal maladministration has not announced mid-year cuts, except his first year in office when former governor Kathleen Blanco left a surplus of at least $800 million. This year's so-called balanced budget is a patched together, smoke-and-mirrors farce enabled by complicit members of the Louisiana Legislature that fooled no one. The governor, along with a majority of the legislators, pledge allegiance to Grover Norquist, rather than adhere to their oaths of office to perform their duties to "support the constitution and laws of the United States and the constitution and laws of this state" and produce a balanced budget.
The announcement of the deficit’s size is expected in mid-October, when details are due to the Legislature’s joint budget committee.
State Treasurer John Kennedy estimates the gap exceeds $100 million.
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Although Kennedy is the state treasurer, the Republican said he can’t get a firm number from the administration. He said his office has done its own calculations to determine the shortfall is “well over” $100 million.
What is going on when the state treasurer has difficulty getting the numbers from the Jindal maladministration? And where is the governor? Out of state campaigning in his futile attempt to seize the nomination as candidate for president of the GOP.
Ah well... at least he'll need a passport to fly out of state after January...
ReplyDeleteJindal is building a home in Baton Rouge, which surprises me. I thought he'd be heading out in shame.
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