More Governor Goofiness

It's bad enough SC Gov. Mark Sanford is writing nonsense in the Wall Street Journal about why he's rejecting stimulus money for the state with the second worst unemployment rate in the country, displaying a level of economic ignorance that borders on the criminal:

If South Carolina could use stimulus money to pay down debt, in two years we will be able to spend, cut taxes or invest even if the federal government can no longer provide more money -- not a remote possibility. In fact, paying debt related to education would free up over $162 million in debt service in the first two years and save roughly $125 million in interest payments over the next 13 years -- just as paying off a family's mortgage early frees up money for other uses.

Of course, that's if the number of unemployed in SC doesn't change and the state has to spend even more money on unemployment benefits...which it most certainly will now since the $700 million won't be creating a single new job. So, as the Palmetto State's tax revenues continue to plummet due to falling home values and foreclosures, and rising unemployment, the state will have to in fact borrow more money to provide the services it has now, or cut them drastically.

Sanford seems like the kind of guy who will do the second there, slicing public services when more and more South Carolinians will need them the most. And let's not forget the state ended up getting $2.1 billion from the feds ANYWAY, making Sanford's fiscal responsibility argument moot. It's clear the Republican governor with the best shot to win nomination in 2012 is the Governor with the largest complex of tent cities.

But in actuality there's now a worse Republican governor than Mark Sanford, and that's Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons, a guy cutting off his state's unemployed even though he doesn't have anything close to a shot at getting the 2012 nomination.

Conservative Republican Govs. Sanford, Perry, Jindal, and Palin have already taken steps to reject federal stimulus aid. Apparently, Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons (R), arguably the nation's least popular and most scandal-plagued governor, wants to join the club.

With Nevada suffering from some of the nation's highest unemployment and foreclosure rates, no one seems to understand what Gibbons is thinking rejecting funds for extended unemployment assistance. If the governor assumed taking an uncompromising conservative stand might rally the Republican base to his defense, he badly miscalculated -- GOP lawmakers and the state's Chamber of Commerce want him to cut the nonsense and accept the money.

While many states would have to change their laws to receive the cash -- the federal government's offer of $7 billion is contingent on states' expanding the eligibility for the benefits -- Nevada already meets the criteria, according to the State Department of Unemployment, Training and Rehabilitation, since it gives benefits to some part-time workers and those who quit their jobs under certain conditions.

Further, some governors have rejected the unemployment piece of the package because their unemployment levels are below the national average. With a 10.1 percent unemployment rate, according to the latest data released Friday, Nevada's rate is above the national average and rising, and the state's fund will be broke by the end of the year. That will trigger federal borrowing to replenish the fund, which Nevada has not had to do since 1974.

A spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada told the NYT, "What makes this particular situation most extreme is the terrible situation the state is in. I mean, how do you look at someone in your state that has lost their job and tell them, 'No, we're not taking this money'? "

And so it goes. Nobody seems to understand why Gibbons is actually doing this, other than he thinks it's cool or something. Nevada will just have to borrow the money anyway. Republicans really are that stupid. I may despair about Obama being able to fix the economy, but not as much as I would be if Republicans were in charge.