In this letter, these lawmakers begged Norquist to grant permission to vote against the SAVE Act, the phony $1,500 tax credit that Gov. Bobby Jindal and the state Senate have approved to offset much of the tax increases passed by legislators and designed to save Louisiana higher education.
Without this preposterous, counterfeit “offset” credit, Jindal believes he cannot claim to have never raised taxes. So, Jindal’s aides admit, the governor sought Norquist’s permission to concoct this credit, which state Treasurer John Kennedy has aptly labeled “nonsense on a stick.”
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Let’s hope that Norquist smiles upon Robideaux’s request and gives the House and Senate permission to trash the SAVE bill. (He didn’t. Since this post first went up, Norquist responded, telling legislators they are not allowed to raise taxes without also passing some kind of offset.)
http://bobmannblog.com/2015/06/08/instead-of-writing-norquist-heres-the-letter-louisiana-lawmakers-should-send-jindal/#more-5609Louisiana Legislators ask Grover Norquist directly about Bobby Jindal's 'no tax' pledge
State Rep. Joel Robideaux, R-Lafayette, and 10 other Louisiana House members sent Norquist a letter (PDF) Sunday night, asking Norquist to rethink his approach to Louisiana's budget and the "no tax" pledge.
Lawmakers are struggling with Norquist's restrictions as they enter the final four days of 2015 budget negotiations. They have to send the spending plan to Jindal's desk by Thursday evening.
The governor has threatened to veto any budget plan or tax bills that don't meet Norquist's "no tax" requirements. Currently, the governor is pushing the Legislature to adopt a controversial higher education tax credit -- commonly called SAVE -- that Jindal says will make the budget comply with Norquist's wishes.
Robideaux and others don't like SAVE and have argued the tax credit could lead to tax hikes in the future. Through the letter, they are asking Norquist to push back on the SAVE legislation.
"We are deeply concerned about the clear and present danger posed by this bill. As conservative Republican legislators, we firmly believe SB 284 is the biggest threat to fiscal responsibility our state has ever faced," wrote Robideaux, head of the Legislature's tax-writing committee, in his letter to Norquist.
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2015/06/louisiana_legislators_grover_n.html#incart_2box2015 Louisiana Legislative session: The winners and the losers
WINNER: Grover Norquist
The Americans for Tax Reform and its founder, Grover Norquist, had significantly influence over Louisiana's budget process.
Back in February, Jindal put forward an initial budget proposal that he knew Norquist would approve. The Louisiana Senate also mostly worked within the parameters laid out by Norquist. Every financial decision was shaped by the anti-tax advocate and his supporters.
At one point, some Louisiana legislators reached out to Norquist directly to try to convince him to change his opinion on one piece of legislation.
Jindal may be courting Norquist because his organization is influential in national Republican politics and the governor is expected to run for president in 2016. But Norquist also has an interest in keeping Jindal on his side, as he faces fallout from Republicans in a few other states -- notably Alabama and Kansas.
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2015/06/2015_legislative_session_winne.htmlNorquist is the cult leader, and so many Republicans have undergone the initiation rites, and they're now afraid to displease their Leader.
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