Guest Column By Matthew J. Brouillette
Many people I meet think November 2 is the be-all and end-all of their 2010 calendar. And don’t get me wrong; Election Day is critical. But I can think of two days that are just as important. The first, as I’ve said many times, is November 3—because that’s when we have to start making sure whoever gets elected the day before actually does what’s right.
The second, though, will probably surprise you: It’s this Friday. That’s why the Commonwealth Foundation is working hard at this very moment. And it’s why I want to tell you very clearly that liberty needs you today. You can’t take a vacation, you can’t leave the task to us, and you can’t wait until November 2.
The reason liberty needs you today is that tomorrow, our State Senate is coming back to town—and the rumor is that later in the week, the House of Representatives will follow suit. And they’re not coming back to play patty cake. Rather, we are hearing that the Senate is planning to resurrect a $27 billion so-called “pension reform” bill that was rightfully shelved this summer.
The Senate is also supposed to debate a new tax on the Marcellus Shale—the natural-gas reserve in Northern PA that’s the only place we are seeing job growth outside of government. This comes after the House passed the nation’s highest severance tax, a true job killer.
And amidst everything, on Wednesday a Senate committee is taking up the crucial issue of school choice. This comes just after former Democratic House Speaker Bob O’Donnell joined CF as a senior fellow working on school choice—and, sadly, after the state Auditor General launched an attack on cyber and charter schools, claiming funding disparities between them and “traditional” public schools. I will be testifying.
CF has been fighting these bad ideas—pension non-reform, a huge natural-gas tax designed to fund the overspending problem in Harrisburg, and picking on cyber and charter schools—for months and even years. Just recently, we’ve put out a video and a memo showing what real pension reform looks like, a video on the severance tax, and launched openPAgov.org, our new website that tracks school spending and achievement and shows that lack of funding is not the problem with any of the schools in the Commonwealth. And we’ll keep fighting this week. But you need to weigh in, too, because at the end of the day, your State Senator is responsible to you, not me.
So please: If you love liberty, don’t be tricked into thinking you can wait until November 2 to fight for it. The General Assembly is flirting with policies that constitute generational theft, killing jobs, and denying opportunities to kids this week. If you make your voice heard, this Friday will be a day to raise a toast. But if not, Friday will be payday for unions and a day for the rest of us to mourn yet more lost freedom. I’m looking forward to hearing you weigh in as we’re…
Fighting for Your Freedom,
Matthew J. Brouillette is the President & CEO of the Commonwealth Foundation
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