Politifact is biased

Politifact is biased

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silicon valley

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suppose Federal tax burden hadn't dropped? suppose Prop 13 hadn't passed? one of which Brown had nothing to do with and one of which Brown worked against? would the CA tax burden still have dropped?

Naturally Right

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Originally posted by zeeblebot
suppose Federal tax burden hadn't dropped? suppose Prop 13 hadn't passed? one of which Brown had nothing to do with and one of which Brown worked against? would the CA tax burden still have dropped?
What exactly does federal tax burden have to do with it?

F

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Originally posted by Sartor Resartus
The man is an uncouth oaf at best, and I do not intend to let him off the hook if he continues to carry on in that vein.
Struth man, can't you see? It's you who is on his hook. Even sh76 was moved to try and tell you.

silicon valley

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Originally posted by no1marauder
What exactly does federal tax burden have to do with it?
you said it dropped. is Brown including that in his claim?

SR

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Originally posted by FMF
Struth man, can't you see? It's you who is on his hook. Even sh76 was moved to try and tell you.
Look FMF, I can handle fools like you and psychotics like shavixmir if either or both of you want to continue.

Naturally Right

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Originally posted by zeeblebot
you said it dropped. is Brown including that in his claim?
No.

Meg Whitman, Brown's opponent, ran an ad with a 1992 clip of Bill Clinton attacking Brown's record as governor. In it, Clinton says:

He [Brown] raised taxes as governor of California.

Brown's response was:

Taxes went down under Jerry Brown.

Politifact was checking the truth of the second statement which is responding to the first and clearly is intended to address California state taxes. It finds the overall tax burden in California went down. Brown did sign some legislation raising a few taxes, so the Clinton statement would be True, but Brown also signed some legislation cutting specific taxes and indexing income taxes to inflation. So both statements are technically True.

silicon valley

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he's claiming credit for the RESULTS of tax reduction measures that he OPPOSED. that's not deceitful?

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/The-Vote/2010/0914/Jerry-Brown-Did-he-raise-taxes-as-California-governor-or-not

Rising taxes in Brown’s early years helped fuel a tax revolt in California that culminated in the passage of Proposition 13, which rolled back local property taxes and made it much more difficult to raise state taxes. Brown opposed this measure until it passed, after which he embraced it and directed its implementation, according to Jackson.

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Originally posted by zeeblebot
he's claiming credit for the RESULTS of tax reduction measures that he OPPOSED. that's not deceitful?

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/The-Vote/2010/0914/Jerry-Brown-Did-he-raise-taxes-as-California-governor-or-not

Rising taxes in Brown’s early years helped fuel a tax revolt in California that culminated in the passage of Proposition 13, which ...[text shortened]... l it passed, after which he embraced it and directed its implementation, according to Jackson.
That's nonsense. Only if you assume he would have raised taxes does that argument work. Prop 13 did not reduce State taxes.

silicon valley

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Originally posted by no1marauder
That's nonsense. Only if you assume he would have raised taxes does that argument work. Prop 13 did not reduce State taxes.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prop_13

In addition to lowering property taxes, the initiative also contained language requiring a two-thirds majority in both legislative houses for future increases in all state tax rates or amounts of revenue collected, including income tax rates.

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Originally posted by zeeblebot
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prop_13

In addition to lowering property taxes, the initiative also contained language requiring a two-thirds majority in both legislative houses for future increases in all state tax rates or amounts of revenue collected, including income tax rates.
Yes, so it didn't reduce State taxes.

silicon valley

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Originally posted by no1marauder
Yes, so it didn't reduce State taxes.
holding state taxes flat is the same as reducing them, given that inflation and the rapaciousness of legislators and public employees increases every year.

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1 edit

Originally posted by zeeblebot
holding state taxes flat is the same as reducing them, given that inflation and the rapaciousness of legislators and public employees increases every year.
George Orwell would be proud of such a statement. Nonetheless, not raising doesn't = reduce in the English language. Prop 13 didn't reduce State taxes.

EDIT: I'm sure if Jerry Brown claimed that he "reduced taxes" by not signing any tax increases, you'd be accusing him of telling untruths.

silicon valley

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Originally posted by no1marauder
George Orwell would be proud of such a statement. Nonetheless, not raising doesn't = reduce in the English language. Prop 13 didn't reduce State taxes.

EDIT: I'm sure if Jerry Brown claimed that he "reduced taxes" by not signing any tax increases, you'd be accusing him of telling untruths.
basically, taxes rose under the first six years of Jerry Brown's reign, at which point the citizens held a tax revolt, at which point taxes dropped for the next two years.

Brown opposed the tax revolt at the time, but then, and now, is happy to try to take credit for reducing taxes. if Brown's opposition had succeeded, taxes would have continued to rise


http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/The-Vote/2010/0914/Jerry-Brown-Did-he-raise-taxes-as-California-governor-or-not

Ironically, the CNN reporter on that story, Brooks Jackson, is now the director of Factcheck.org. He wrote a piece for the organization’s website explicating his old mistake.

However, as Mr. Jackson notes, state taxes, measured as a portion of each $100 of personal income, did go up for four of Brown’s eight years as governor. In six of those years, the tax burden was higher than before Brown took office.

“The point I was trying to make in 1992 remains valid. Brown’s claims to have been a tax-cutting governor – then and now – need to be seen in context,” writes Jackson.


http://www.factcheck.org/2010/09/jerry-brown-and-california-taxes/

Brown was a staunch foe of Prop. 13 — until it passed. Los Angeles Times political columnist George Skelton, who has covered California politics since 1974, recalled recently: "The governor railed against Prop. 13, calling it ‘a fraud,’ ‘a rip-off’ and ‘a can of worms.’ " But then the measure passed — with 65 percent of the vote. "That was the low point of Brown’s first term as governor — a low point that lasted maybe 40 seconds," Skelton reported. Brown then embraced Prop. 13 and directed its implementation.

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1 edit

Originally posted by zeeblebot
basically, taxes rose under the first six years of Jerry Brown's reign, at which point the citizens held a tax revolt, at which point taxes dropped for the next two years.

Brown opposed the tax revolt at the time, but then, and now, is happy to try to take credit for reducing taxes. if Brown's opposition had succeeded, taxes would have continued to ris seconds," Skelton reported. Brown then embraced Prop. 13 and directed its implementation.
I read it. Nothing in there changes the fact that Prop 13 DID NOT REDUCE STATE TAXES. So giving it credit for something it did not do is untruthful.

Since there seems to have been few changes in State tax law, the changes in tax revenue look like they occurred because of economic conditions i.e. the economy went into recession in the early 80's and this undoubtedly adversely affected tax revenue.

silicon valley

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ok, i'm confused. basically Brown was a candidate for Senate at the trailing end of his term and a Governor In Name Only. so tell me again how he cut taxes?


http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=see_jerry_run_again

...

Brown was distracted as this new system was constructed. During one stretch in 1979, he was out of California for 79 out of 100 days as he prepared for his 1980 presidential campaign. Brown stayed in touch by phone, but it was hard to get much done with an absentee governor. "Our long suit has always been ideas," his then–Chief of Staff Gray Davis told The Washington Post in 1979. "Our shortcomings have been in staffing and carrying out those ideas."

To his critics, this is the real Brown -- a fellow always busy running for the next office. The pattern began all the way back in 1969, when he ran for a seat on the Los Angeles Community College Board of Trustees in order to build a Southern California political base for a campaign for the secretary of state's office in 1970. Not long after arriving in that job, he began plotting his 1974 run for governor. In just his second year in office, in 1976, he ran for president. Even his defeat in that and the 1980 election wouldn't change him. He spent his final year in office -- 1982 -- running for the U.S. Senate, a race he lost to Pete Wilson.

...