He haz a sad.
Pobre, pobre Ed Garner. He tried so hard, yes he did. But, evidently, he just couldn’t cry enough tears for the rich to get the abhorrent and downright unconstitutional HB 1002 passed. You see, fair reader, the Arkansas Senate and Revenue Tax Committee voted down the bill, one which was a direct middle finger to all non-millionaires in the state. However, that’s not the bad news for Garner.
Between his House term limit and his failure to pass this trainwreck of a bill, Garner may no longer be considered a useful idiot for his real masters, the Stephens and Walton families. Between the two families and their directly related interests, they donated nearly $16,000 to Garner during the last cycle. Will Garner get this if he decides to run for State Senate? Did he shed enough tears? In this climate of hand-outs to the wealthiest, his task was hardly Sisyphean; yet, he failed.
Even your occasional oligarch (a chunk of the donations came from inheritors, not necessarily intelligent business people) knows a bad deal when they see it, and that’s quite a poor return on investment for buying and pocketing Garner’s services. Will Garner be able to bounce back from this abject failure? After all, if Ed Garner can’t even face Blue Hog Report, how is he supposed to stand up to
However, what’s bad news for Ed Garner is fantastic news for Arkansas. In what has become a fad across the country, bought-and-paid-for politicians like Garner have been passing bills such as HB 1002, directly against the public’s best interests. Instead of literally giving $110 million to the richest of the rich, Arkansas can use the money to re-invest in itself in such crazy things as education and infrastructure (most of the aforementioned $110 million would’ve come out of the education budget, if that gives you an idea of the idiocy of the bill).
Congratulations, Arkansas, this was a big victory for you. While other states such as Texas, Florida, and Wisconsin slash education budgets, you’ll be able to make your citizens smarter, which will truly draw employers to the state. Stopping this “Welfare for Millionaires” bill was a step in the correct direction.
* No, I doubt Garner’s political career is over. Garner did fail, yes, but when lawmakers make such easy, willing puppets, it’s hard to toss them out.