Texas has a VERY limited government.
We can thank the carpetbaggers after the Civil War for that one. The
legislature only meets every other year and has to draw up a two year
budget. And it has to be balanced or the budget is unconstitutional. So
a money shortfall in the second year requires a special session of the
legislature to rebalance the budget for that year. A state income tax
is likewise unconstitutional (and political suicide).
Our ballot measures are largely constitutional amendments passed by the
legislature and we can thank the carpetbaggers for that one, too. The
county is king in the Texas Constitution, so if you want to do things
that cross county lines it pretty much requires a constitutional
amendment. Things like a multi-county hospital district. Or a
multi-county toll road authority.
David
ORourke1 Signature
"A
pleasant natural environment is a good - a luxury good, philosophical
good, a moral goody-good, a good time for all. Whatever, we want it. If
we want something, we should pay for it, with our labor or our cash. We
shouldn't beg it, steal it, sit around wishing for it, or euchre the
government into taking it by force."--P.
J. O’Rourke
On 3/27/2010 5:57 PM, [email protected] wrote:
No initiative and Referendum process ? ? ? Hard to imagine.
Here we have ballot measures every election. The only drawback,
and it is easy enough to live with, are occasional elections when
the number of measures goes over the top, viz, into the teens
Sometimes most of the excitement in an election concerns
one or two controversial ballot measures
About redistricting, your point about a national system is right
on.
Billy
----------------------------------------------------
In a message dated 3/27/2010 2:40:17 P.M. Pacific Daylight Time,
[email protected] writes: They aren't impractical
everywhere.
I thoroughly agree with the voting recommendations. Wish we could start
that one this year.
The redistricting thing would need to be national. Texas and Florida
would not go there unless New York and California did. Republicans in
Texas and Florida would not be willing to give up their large
Congressional Majorities in those states (Texas is almost 2:1) unless
the Democrats in heavily Democratic states were to do likewise.
Initiative and referendum states and areas can introduce them. States
bound to the D/R political gamesmanship are going to have a hard time,
practically, getting around the partisan obstacles. I wish that Texas
had an Initiative and Referendum process but we don't, and we are
unlikely to get that from the legislature.
David
"A
pleasant natural environment is a good - a luxury good, philosophical
good, a moral goody-good, a good time for all. Whatever, we want it. If
we want something, we should pay for it, with our labor or our cash. We
shouldn't beg it, steal it, sit around wishing for it, or euchre the
government into taking it by force."--P.
J. O’Rourke
On 3/27/2010 9:50 AM, Dr. Ernie Prabhakar wrote:
Hi DRB,
There are only 2 things I don't like here
Ernie: 1) his predisposition to call the tea party folks "nuts"
I agree. You don't get non-partisan success by name-calling.
and 2) your prejudging that I wouldn't
like the article.
My bad.
He was MIA in making the call of "nuts"
against the BushHitler demonstrators for eight years, so I think that
his current diagnosis of the tea party folks is extremely partisan in
that regard.
So does that mean you agree with his various proposals, even if you
think them impractical?
E
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