Block · one region of the page, as the scanner read it. It may hold a whole story, part of one, several, or an advertisement; stitching blocks into articles is the next step. Text is supplied OCR.
Page 4 · column 4 of 6 · from the scan, no model involved
statement against these cuts. Ordinary citizens were asking if it made sense to spend more for jails at the expense of education instead of the other way around. There was no way that any consultant could have come up with a scenario like what happened.
In a sense Gov. Allen was a prisoner of his own rhetoric. In campaigning against big government, he failed to recognize that Gov. Wilder had instituted a major restructuring and cutting of Virginia’s state agencies. Remember that under Gov. Wilder, Virginia was chosen the best run state for two years by a major financial magazine. There was no real fat left for Gov. Allen to cut. Gov. Wilder had already cut that. All that was left for Gov. Allen to cut were popular and useful government services. And the people of Virginia overwhelmingly said not to cut them. As far as taxes go, many Virginians recognized that they pay less state and local taxes per capita than do residents of 44 out of SO states. They didn’t see a great state and local tax burden to warrant these cuts.
When Republicans in the House of Delegates were given the opportunity of voting on Gov. Allen's budget, not one Republican voted for it, not one! Ten voted against that budget, and 37 abstained. No one voted for it. For Republicans to then claim that Gov.. Allen’s agenda was defeated by Democratic machinations is cynical handwaving, and insults the intelligence of Virginians. Gov. Allen’s agenda was defeated because it was a bad agenda, designed more for the governor’s ambitions to be a vicepresidential candidate than for the good of Virginians. It received the repudiation it deserved. We all should be thankful for that repudiation since we all had a part in it.
In the months to come, it would
86.8%