how texas lives within its means

During a time when I'm often left shaking my head after listening to a politician trying to explain away the reckless spending of my children and grandchildren's money, the Op-Ed column written by Texas Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst that I read this morning was a welcome (and rare) breath of fresh air.

Given recent comments about our state’s budget, I feel it is time to
separate fact from political fiction. The fact is, in stark contrast to the U.
S. Congress, the Texas Constitution requires the Legislature to balance the
state budget every two years, and that would have happened with or without any
federal stimulus dollars.

In 2007, I led the effort to save $7 billion to balance the revenue
shortfall we anticipated this year.

So it’s simply political fiction that stimulus dollars were necessary
to balance our budget.
Although we tried to use the federal stimulus dollars
on one-time expenditures, in some cases the federal government made us use the
money on recurring costs that actually add to the cost of state
government.

While other states struggle with overwhelming deficits, Texas has
created a model for the rest of the nation to follow that is based on living
within its available revenue. The state cut taxes a net $4 billion per year in
2007 while fostering a predictable regulatory environment that allows business
to thrive and continue to make Texas the No. 1 job creator in the U.S. over the
past two years.

These are the moral, fiscally conservative values with which I was raised, and with which I will try and impart to my children. In a nutshell, if you don't have the money, don't spend it.

Thank God not all politicians have lost their freakin' minds.