Legislatures across the country can't wrest control of $48.6 billion made available under the new federal stimulus law to help states cope with their budgets.
White House budget chief Peter Orszag (OHR'-zag) says there is no provision in the stimulus law for state lawmakers to accept that money without approval by the governor. South Carolina's Republican governor, Mark Sanford, has said he may decline more than $700 million in stimulus money because the White House won't let him spend the money to pay down his state's debt.
Orszag wrote in a letter to Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., that Sanford controls those purse strings. The White House also urged Congress to change the law to avoid what it called unfortunate and unintended consequences.
Palin's plan of playing to her base by refusing the funds that are supposed to "grow government" but accepting the ones that allow her to build roads and infrastructure for her doomed gas pipeline plan, and then expecting the legislators to provide cover for her by accepting the other funds in her stead, is a non-starter. Essentially if Palin does not face reality she stands to cost Alaska around 288 million dollars of money that we are going to desperately need in the next few years.
There has already apparently been a letter from Obama to South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford over this very subject.
The correspondence reportedly states that roughly $700 million in discretionary stimulus money allocated for South Carolina will be revoked on Friday if Sanford declines to accept the funds and that, by law, no alternative options can be accepted.
Okay we know that Caribou Barbie has no idea what the right course of action is until she is attacked for doing something stupid, and we simply do not have that luxury in this case, so it may in fact be up to us to set our Governor straight.
You can e-mail the Governor directly here. Or call her office at (907) 269-7450. Use short, easy to understand sentences, because you know how confused she can get.
If we do not light a fire under this ridiculous woman she may actually keep Alaska from getting free money from the Federal government! I don't care if you are a Democrat, a Republican, a Libertarian, or a member of the freaking Green Party, NOBODY in Alaska says no to Federal money!
If Sarah screws this up she may have to jump on the first flight out Friday night before a horde of pitchfork wielding Alaskans show up on her porch in Wasilla.
Good God, this woman is a mean, vindictive person if ever there has been one!!! Wish I could be there with a pitchfork.
ReplyDeleteI like this. I like that the state governors have to be accountable. I was always of the opinion that it was complete & utter b.s. that she could posture & pander to her base by rejecting certain funds, knowing full well that the legislature would override much, if not all, of it.
ReplyDeleteSo, I think this is great! If ALL of the funds are not accepted there is one person and one person only who can be held accountable -- the gov.
SMR
Awesome...I like how you wrote "Use short easy to understand sentences"...no point confusing her with a taste of her own famous word salad.
ReplyDeleteSanford is going down in flames...his state has one of the highest unemployment, poverty, and high school dropout rates. Like ANYONE would want to follow in this loser's footsteps? Take Sarah down with you, Mark
As much as I would like too see Sarah Palin driven from office with pitchforks - the people of Alaska are more important so I hope she accepts the funds
ReplyDeleteSorry to go back to a previous topic, but I just realized something funny about the Ted Stevens trial. That was the Bush Administration's Injustice Department, the same people who were caging voters, fired people who didn't go along with their thinking, come on, we know the list. By continuing to make missteps during the trial, and they screwed up numbers of time, they were insuring that the (deserved) guilty verdict would be undone by their actions. Think about it; they screwed up on purpose!!!
ReplyDeleteI think it's great that the Governor must request the funds and if s/he doesn't, the offer is void.
ReplyDeleteWhy? Because this way a Governor cannot feign rejection to get political 'cred' while the legislature bails her/him out by taking the stimulus anyway.
I truly feel awful though for SC, AK and whoever that other viper down south is.
YIKES! I did not realize that the legs actually could not override GINO... Sorry Alaskans - I gusee you are S.O.L. ...:(
ReplyDeleteAs Senator Chuck Shumer explains the legislation enabling the stimulus funding, Governors must apply to accept ALL the funding offered, or accept nothing.
ReplyDeleteThere are two possibilities here: Sarah has deliberately sat on her hands, just to appeal to the conservative base necessary for her Presidential bid (and shafting Alaska in the process, or,
Sarah just doesn't understand that this funding is not a la carte.
If it's the second, it makes one wonder - isn't anyone on her staff even remotely competent (yeah, it's a rhetorical question) to advise her?
Wow - so now, what will happen?
ReplyDeleteWill the Governatoress allow this to go down to shore up her "base) (no not her makeup) and let AK suffer believing she will be living in the WH in 4.5 years?
Or does she honestly believe AK doesn't want the money?
By the way, I saw that the Senate Dems shot the GruesomeDork down today....she must be eating her nails (or Todds) (sorry!) too much visual.
Alaskans won't actually be turning down FREE money. They (Palin, really) will be turning down money that they will be paying for in their taxes. They will be getting NOTHING for their stimulus taxes. That's even worse! I emailed her this, but I don't know if she will care.
ReplyDeletePalin needs to be rebooted, her hard drive isn't working for Alaskans. Her brain needs defragging to form understandable thinking even for a 4 yr. old. She is plugged in but no stimulus is getting her to connect to reality. Kilobite of memory is outdated.
ReplyDeletePlease recall Palin, she is non-working and is non-repairable at this time or never.
Sarah Palin has known this all along, that is why she kept the legislators waiting. She has the power and she is viciously dangerous. political trickery is her only skill.
ReplyDeleteWolfe Tone...
ReplyDeleteI had read Schumers letter, but I had not seen anywhere if Obama had agreed with his interpretation. Do you know if this is a rule or just a request?
I called and emailed... I am glad though that she will take the fall for not accepting if she chooses to do that. Sad day for Alaskans if she blows this.
This stimulus is to get the Nation out of the death spiral so any state that does not participate is not only hurting their own people, but they are denting the whole recovery!!!
ReplyDelete