Vaudt Confirms - Taxpayers Were Duped
On Wednesday, state auditor David Vaudt held a meeting with the press to discuss his findings in the state budget. After careful review and breakdown of the Democrats' budget, Vaudt pointed out the following:
--The past two legislative sessions have increased state spending by $849 million, while revenue only grew by $559 million
--Democrats claimed to have repaid the Senior Living Trust but Vaudt found the hidden shifts which show the trust fund balance will be less than $38 million by the end of June 2009.
--Democrats shifted $444 million of expenses to special accounts to get around the state’s spending limitation law, hiding record spending from Iowa taxpayers.
The auditor's criticisms of the Democrats’ budget echoes what House Republicans have been saying since early in 2007. Democrats who campaigned as conservative, pro-business candidates came to Des Moines and became big-spending liberals. The auditors' criticism is further proof that while the Democrats claim to have approved a fiscally sound budget, the truth is that they went on a spending spree and tried to hide it from the taxpayers. I commend Auditor Vaudt for being diligent in revealing the truth behinds the Democrats’ irresponsible and bloated budget.
To view the entire review of the auditor's findings visit my website (www.rants.us)
