Neff won’t say no to higher taxes
Published: October 26, 2009
I had the opportunity to watch the recent televised debate between Cynthia Neff and Rob Bell. I am on a fixed income, and I was particularly interested in questions about taxes.
What I noticed is that time after time, when the issue was gas taxes or some other tax, Mr. Bell would clearly state his position against higher taxes, and then Ms. Neff would talk and talk and then finally admit that she would be willing to raise taxes. She said this about the gas tax, and even said she would have voted for the sales tax increases in 2004.
We don’t have to look at what they say, but can just look at their records. Mr. Bell has always been a fiscal conservative and has opposed tax increases in the General Assembly. However, I was at the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors meeting in 2008 where Ms. Neff spoke in favor of increasing the county property tax.
Of course, Ms. Neff is calling for lots of new spending on her Web site, so it only follows that she would be for higher taxes, too.
In this recession, we can’t afford higher taxes like those Ms. Neff would support.
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Reader Reactions
albelibe, yea, dont make that mistake again.
Foehammer - forgive me for assuming that you wanted to discuss actual substantive issues that are larger than this particular election or cycle rather than make superficial comments about this one particular horserace. Typical for conservatives to avoid discussing the merits of positions, as they do tend to lose in the rare instances when they actually allow that to happen - I won’t make the same mistake again.
albemarleliberal, although your arguments seem to be based on emotion rather than fact, it is a mute point, she has already lost this election.
Wow, foehammer, way to completely hide the ball. This op-ed references:
* The overwhelmingly popular Warner sales tax increases that saved our economy from the DISASTROUS Gilmore economic policies;
* The fact that Neff floated the idea of raising the diesel tax (when diesel trucks do 90,000 times the damage of a regular unleaded-fueled vehicle) and coupling it with a DECREASE in the regular gas tax;
* And that the letter discusses “new spending” on her (ooo, how new-fangled) “Web site” ... when, in actuality, the website discusses DOZENS of revenue-neutral, zero-based proposals ...
So, in actuality, what this letter was about was lying about Neff’s positions and Neff’s record, not in any way about that mailer. So, again, way to completely change the subject, hide the ball, and again hide the fact that:
1) Neff is proposing middle tax class cuts and a huge number of revenue neutral proposals and creative ways to raise funds and cut waste and fraud in the state government; and that
2) Rob Bell has continuously voted to gut programs and throw our schools, teachers, small businesses, and our transportation infrastructure under the bus.
How about an honest discussion?
Hey albemarlecjd, she is stupid enough to put out that mailer. She has a warped sense of right and wrong. She does not stand a chance in this election.
It’s so hard to be honest when you have spent your whole career as a corporate personel hack, but Ms. Neff is to be congratulated for speaking the truth. Taxes in this area must go up AND we need someone with the creativity to develop tax programs for long time elderly residents who want to keep their homes and enjoy their independence.
That said. with all of the outsourcing and ruthless job actions at IBM I can’t help but wonder if Ms. Neff would do better running for mayor of Mumbai.
Please. Ms. Neff has said time and time again that she values that Virginia is the best state in which to do business, and an important part of that is keeping her taxes low. And in fact, the policy on her website is almost to a proposal revenue neutral - she’s even found 1 billion dollars in waste and fraud spending that she wants to cut. Just because she’s not stupid enough to make an empty promise about never raising taxes, she’s attacked?
This letter is both disingenuous and an attempt to pander to the lowest common denominator among us. Shameful.
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