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Arizona's Spending Problem

We have a problem. Arizona's governor has outspent 48 of her peers:

A new study gives Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano an "F" grade when it comes to government spending and fiscal restraint. The conservative Cato Institute gives the Arizona Democrat a grade of 43 percent for her spending policies during her first term in office.

Ouch. The report author comments:

Janet Napolitano likes to portray herself as a fiscally conservative Democrat. There exists, however, a chasm between that image and the reality of her fiscal record. She proposed massive budgets throughout the past four years that amount to an annual average increase of 6 percent in real per capita terms.

Napolitano campaign spokeswoman Jeanine L'Ecuyer's response was laughable:

Time Magazine named Janet Napolitano one of the five best governors in the U.S. Inc. Magazine credited her with helping to create one of the best state environments for entrepreneurs. Governing Magazine called her one of the best governors in the nation. It leads me to the conclusion that the Cato Institute is just wrong."

Really, what else could L'Ecuyer say. The numbers are black and white and tell us that under Napolitano, Arizona is now spending more per capita than most other states with similar populations. Yes, I'm voting for Len Munsil.

Posted by tim at October 22, 2006 6:43 AM

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