It’s also a tad disingenuous to attempt shifting responsibility for the “dire shape” our state finds itself in today onto Republican legislators. Democratic legislators have been in power for most of the past 100 years. Why should Republicans now rush to the front of the budget cut idea line so that Democrats can raise taxes and then blame the Republicans for the budget cuts on the Democrats’ pet projects?

At last count, Democrats control 68 of the 120 seats in the N.C. House, and 31 of 50 in the N.C. Senate – more than enough to enact any budget that Democratic Reps. Rick Glazier, Marvin Lucas, Elmer Floyd and Margaret Dickson, along with Sens. Tony Rand and Larry Shaw, want passed.

Instead of exerting responsible leadership and being good stewards of taxpayer dollars, local Democratic legislators now want to hide behind ridiculous, twisted rhetoric and logic to shift blame onto the political party that has had zero power in state government for more than a decade.

Fiscal misery

Why try now to blame Republicans?

When the Democrats overspent during the Mike Easley, Jim Hunt and Jim Black eras – and now under Gov. Bev Perdue over GOP objections and without significant GOP support – Democrats bragged about how they were providing for the future of our state.

The Democrats’ future is now our very scary present misery. We are about to see them raise taxes again, including higher sales taxes, liquor taxes, business taxes, automotive repair taxes and income taxes.

Could it be that local legislators know the tide is turning against them and their legacy of cronyism and wasteful pork-barrel spending is being exposed a bit too much for their comfort and that of their biggest financial supporters? (Is this why Glazier sponsored N.C. House Bill 120 to mandate taxpayer funding of municipal elections, which would be one step away from mandating taxpayer funding of General Assembly elections?)

Could it be they know they will finally be held accountable for their out-of-control spending on questionable projects in education that would best be dealt with through the private sector, highway construction, teapot museums, raiding the transportation fund, etc.?

Could it be that their scare tactics with the budget process this year have resulted in frightening some of their biggest constituency groups, such as the North Carolina Association of Educators, who are beginning to see the wisdom of no longer giving Democrats blanket endorsements? (In exchange for its support, the NCAE must now explain to classroom teachers that their class sizes will be larger and that current furloughs – mandated time off without pay – may be increased from the current 10 hours.)

Could it be they realize that local, state and national Taxed Enough Already Party participants have included numerous individuals from all political parties who are fed up with the Democrats’ self-serving politics?

The citizens of Cumberland County and North Carolina are seeing clearly for the first time in decades how they’ve been manipulated by the Democrats into believing the Democrats know what’s best for everyone and will take care of everyone. North Carolinians of all political parties know without a doubt that the only fingerprints on this state’s fiscal problems belong to Democrats.

What our current legislative delegation fears most is that local voters will remember in 2010 that “None of the six commissioners and five legislators – all Democrats – who met at the Cumberland County Courthouse, spoke against higher taxes” (”Warning sent on budget,” June 9) while refusing to take responsibility for budget cuts and the mess they’ve created.

Suzanne Rucker is chairwoman of the Cumberland County Republican Party.

There it was: These rallies weren’t about taxes; they were about opposing everything Obama — the new Democrat poison arrow meant to silence public opposition to the administration’s policies.  

There it was: Framing the rally as a Republican led rally because we Republicans have yet to get over our November loss instead of what it was — an event attended by vocal Republicans, Democrats, Independents and others who are simply fed up with seeing our children and grandchildren become indebted before their old enough to work.  

There it was: The question about whether or not the participants would be protesting “…if John McCain had won and done the same things as Obama …”

Had Pitts remained for the entire hour of the Person Street rally, he would have heard speakers say that there’s plenty of blame for the tax crisis — Democrat and Republican — to go around. He would have heard the answer to his question, but it wouldn’t have fit his preconceived conclusion.

And, had he been there the entire hour, he would have heard an eloquent young man talk about the responsibility of we the people to hold accountable those who govern us. Democrat, Republican, Independent or other, this is precisely what we all need to be doing until the day dawns when there are rallies supporting these massive, burdensome tax hikes.