If you had a choice of being taxed, or having me taxed, you know what you would do. That is what the special interests in California are doing–giving large donations to Jerry Brown so he can take $7 billion a year from you–NOT THEM.
The hospitals don’t want spending cuts, the Tribes don’t want “fee” increases on the slots and the oil industry does not want a 12.5% severance tax on oil.
The Brown tax increase is about greed–greed from unions, greed from crony capitalist and greed of the special interests.
Corruption has many forms and Jerry Brown has been around long enough to know them all.
Brown’s Early Tax Initiative Donors: Hospitals, Oil, Tribes
http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2012/01/23/browns-early-tax-initiative-donors-hospitals-oil-tribes/#more-11478
Governor Jerry Brown looks to be off to a strong start in collecting cash for his November tax initiative, with cash coming from some of the same groups his predecessor argued were the problem in California politics.
What these early dollars seem to clearly show is that Governor Brown is eager to crate a coalition of support for his tax hike that spans the political spectrum. And that includes those who don’t agree with him on every issue.
Take Occidental, a major player in the 2010 campaign in support of
Proposition 23. That was the initiative designed to either delay or kill (depending on your viewpoint) the state’s landmark climate change law, AB 32. In fact,
Oxy’s participation in that campaign earned them criticism from then Governor
Arnold Schwarznegger, a longtime ally of Occidental and other oil companies.
In fact, it seems noteworthy that Schwarzenegger’s definition of the infamous “special interests” in California politics now matches up rather nicely with Jerry Brown’s tax initiative donors: organized labor, Indian gaming tribes, and Big Oil. Indian tribes, in particular, have found a more friendly ear in the governor’s office with Brown than with Schwarzenegger. And while these are only early donors to the cause, they do offer a glimpse at how the governor sees the campaign that lies ahead.
