Wandering out to the Western Slope on his cross-state jaunt with his U.S. Senate protege Michael Bennet, Governor Bill Ritter yesterday sat down with the editors of the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. When asked about his reckless anti-TABOR remarks (“the straightjacket”) in his State of the State speech, here’s reporter Mike Saccone’s retelling of how Ritter defended himself:
He started by saying that if Colorado has taken all the money it has refunded under TABOR and kept it in a rainy-day fund, Colorado would not have had to make massive budget cuts in the last recession and an estimated $600 million worth of cuts this year.
Here’s the problem, though. Bill Ritter already chose to pass up a legitimate chance to put money from Referendum C into a rainy day fund. So what reason do I have to believe Ritter is being sincere here? That’s right: no reason.
Talk is cheap, as they say. And blaming taxpayer protections in the state constitution only makes Ritter look like a weak and fiscally irresponsible leader.
Woulda’, coulda’, shoulda’…
What reason does anyone have to believe a word out of his mouth,,,thats right, none.