WI Budget: Begging and borrowing

The office chatter today included our satisfaction that the JS Online is finally starting to act like a newspaper. They have handled the news in a much more balanced manner over the last few weeks, especially as it relates to programs and politicians they have traditionally been blinded by:

"In his budget address Tuesday, Doyle said he planned to move $250 million in gas tax and license fee dollars from transportation to the state's deficit-plagued general fund, then borrow $250 million to replenish the transportation fund."

I'm not a math major, but it sure sounds like all that's being proposed in this plan is spending an additional $250 million dollars ~ with interest!

"Doyle could not wipe out the structural deficit without cutting funds for top priorities such as education, health care and transportation or raising taxes - something the governor was never going to do, Marotta said.

'We'd love to eliminate the structural balance, but we've got a lot of competing factors,' Marotta said. 'The key for us is to keep going in the right direction. I think we're going in the right direction."

The "competing factors" are what will keep our taxes higher than they need to be. Everyone has their pet programs and constituency they need to take care of.