The Democrat-controlled California legislature has passed a measure that hikes taxes at the pump by $.12/gallon for gas, and $.20/gallon for diesel, beginning Nov 01 2017. (They also hiked the vehicle registration fees based on its value, to start Jan 2018.)
A Republican legislator objected, believing Californians are over-taxed enough already.
He introduced a ballot measure for citizens to vote on if they want the tax in 2018. But the California attorney general, (Becerra) changed title wording to obscure the fact citizens would be voting against a new ‘tax’…he re-titled it with the word ‘revenues’.
So a ballot measure asking citizens if they want another ‘tax’ is up for a vote in 2018, and attorney general Becerra changes the word to a ‘revenue’…business as usual.
Fortunately, a Superior Court judge knows the difference between tax and revenue.
Thus, the Fox News headline: “California judge scolds Dem AG for ‘misleading’ ballot question on tax repeal, rewrites it”
California’s attorney general…(you know, the one sworn to “…well and faithfully discharge the duties upon which I am about to enter”?) just got slapped down by a Sacramento County Superior Court judge for trying to pull a fast one on his citizens.
‘Revenue’ is defined as ‘a state’s annual income from which public expenses are met’.
Sounds pretty friendly and non-intrusive; doesn’t sound like a burdensome tax, right?Most people understand the word as defined – money already in the treasury – and aren’t inclined to vote against spending existing money…but it’s not existing money.
On the other hand, ‘Tax’ is defined as “a compulsory contribution to state revenue, levied by the government on workers’ income and business profits or added to the cost of some goods, services, and transactions.” Not so friendly, when compulsory. ANOTHER tax? Who wants that? NOBODY, that’s who…can’t use that word, no sir!
So Becerra thinks – hey, let’s just change the ‘tax’ word to ‘revenue’ – and voila!
This is Democrat ‘wordsmithing’…just as a blacksmith takes steel and hammers it into different useful shapes, so Democrats hammer words into ‘useful’ shapes…the problem is, their wordsmithing is meant to be deceptively misleading, easier to slip past voters.
This is how a Democrat Attorney General “well and faithfully discharges” his duties?
Well, of course…he’s a D-E-M-O-C-R-A-T.