Despite massive rejection of the progressive agenda throughout the nation last Tuesday, two states, New York and California, remained virtually immune to the groundswell. Voters in both states elected or re-elected liberal Democrats by healthy margins. Unlike my liberal counterparts, who characterize voters as "remarkably insightful" when they embrace the progressive agenda and "fearful and uninformed" when they reject it, I will not question the wisdom of the electorate.
On the other hand, one idea has to remain inarguable: people
must take responsibility for their choices.
New York and California both stand on the edge of fiscal insolvency, due in large part to their embrace of progressive policies: bloated public sector payrolls, high taxes, illegal alien-protecting "sanctuary cities" and massive amounts of deficit spending. Voters in both states, exactly like the rest of America, had a chance to rid themselves of the Democrat politicians overwhelmingly responsible for creating the mess. They chose not to do so.
So what's the problem? Nothing--as long as what happens in New York and California stays in New York and California. What I mean by that is simple: no federal bailouts for irresponsible state governments heading for bankruptcy. None
whatsoever.
Americans have had it up to their collective eyeballs with the "too big to fail," mentality and
nothing would be more detrimental to the country as a whole than taxpayers from other states--
fiscally responsible states--being forced to underwrite their profligate brethren.
If such a thing were to happen, there would be no incentive for
any state to make the tough choices necessary to keep spending under control. The last thing America needs is a 50-state "race to the bottom" knowing the federal government--meaning the American taxpayer-- will "be there" in the end.
New Yorkers and Californians did what they did on their own. Now they must live with the consequences--on
their own.
