MCViewPoint

Opinion from a Libertarian ViewPoint

Posts Tagged ‘Josh Shapiro’

Pennsylvania Governor Caves To Teachers Union On School Choice

Posted by M. C. on July 6, 2023

“Our Commonwealth should not be plunged into a painful, protracted budget impasse while our communities wait for the help and resources this commonsense budget will deliver,”

When you hear about “commonsense” legislation…lookout!

I am guessing the only “impasse” Shapiro is worried about, like former Gov Ridge, is in receiving PSEA votes and contributions.

https://www.dailywire.com/news/pennsylvania-governor-caves-to-teachers-union-on-school-choice

By  Michael Whittaker

Mark Makela via Getty Images

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro dropped his previous demands for a $100 million school vouchers program from the state budget after fierce opposition from teachers unions and other Democrats.

The voucher program was supported by the Republican-controlled state Senate, but stalled in the Democratic state House. While the budget contained many Democratic priorities, such as increased spending for education and state funding for legal defense (Pennsylvania is currently the only state that does not fund public defenders – that responsibility rests with its counties), the voucher program faced fierce opposition from the Pennsylvania State Education Association, the largest teachers union in the state. That opposition was enough to stall the state budget past its June 30 deadline, leading Shapiro to back down.

“Our Commonwealth should not be plunged into a painful, protracted budget impasse while our communities wait for the help and resources this commonsense budget will deliver,” Shapiro said. “Knowing that the two chambers will not reach consensus at this time to enact [the voucher program], and unwilling to hold up our entire budget process over this issue, I will line-item veto the full $100 million appropriation and it will not be part of this budget bill,” Shapiro said.

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Dailywire Article-DeSantis Unveils Plan To Battle Biden’s ‘Efforts To Inject A Centralized Bank Digital Currency’

Posted by M. C. on March 21, 2023

“A Central Bank Digital Currency is the cornerstone of a federal government that could track each and every transaction that happens in the world,” Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis said in the press release. “There would be no privacy, and if there is no privacy, there are no rights. In the same way Florida is fighting back against the IRS, we need to fight back against this program.

Fighting “free” money and “legal” surveillance will be tough.

I am sure PA gov Josh Shapiro will be the first to join DeSantis in this fight as individual liberty has been the first priority of PA governors of late…joke.

https://www.dailywire.com/news/desantis-unveils-plan-to-battle-bidens-efforts-to-inject-a-centralized-bank-digital-currency

By  Ben Zeisloft

Photo: Executive Office of the Governor of Florida

Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) revealed a proposal on Monday meant to combat the possible implementation of a central bank digital currency by the Federal Reserve and the Biden administration.

Critics of a potential central bank digital currency note that the asset, which would be managed by the Federal Reserve and tethered to the value of the dollar, would create opportunities for government surveillance and control of private citizens. DeSantis proposed legislation that would ban the recognition of central bank digital currencies, whether from the federal government or an overseas central bank, as money under Florida’s Uniform Commercial Code.

“The Biden administration’s efforts to inject a Centralized Bank Digital Currency is about surveillance and control,” DeSantis said in a press release. “Today’s announcement will protect Florida consumers and businesses from the reckless adoption of a ‘centralized digital dollar’ which will stifle innovation and promote government-sanctioned surveillance. Florida will not side with economic central planners; we will not adopt policies that threaten personal economic freedom and security.”

Nations such as China, Australia, Japan, India, Russia, and South Korea are presently exploring central bank digital currencies, which have already been established in the Bahamas, Nigeria, and Jamaica, according to a report from the Atlantic Council.

Skeptics of central bank digital currencies have noted the many instances in which the financial system has been leveraged by public and private actors to oppose certain political perspectives, including those often held by conservatives. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked emergency powers last year to freeze the personal and corporate bank accounts of people involved with demonstrations against vaccine mandates, while PayPal announced that the firm would withdraw funds from accounts deemed to be promoting racism or misinformation, a policy that the company later claimed was published by mistake.

Gov. Kristi Noem (R-SD) recently vetoed legislation that would have classified a potential central bank digital currency as money in South Dakota’s Uniform Commercial Code. DeSantis called on other states to adopt similar prohibitions on the digital assets.

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Dailywire Article-PA Governor Accuses Norfolk Southern Of Giving ‘The Middle Finger’ To Residents After Ohio Train Crash, Makes Criminal Referral

Posted by M. C. on February 24, 2023

Commendable for a PA politician – No mention of Pete Buttigieg!

https://www.dailywire.com/news/pa-governor-accuses-norfolk-southern-of-giving-the-middle-finger-to-residents-after-ohio-train-crash-makes-criminal-referral

By  Ben Zeisloft

Photo: The Daily Wire

Pennsylvania Democratic Gov. Governor Josh Shapiro announced on Wednesday that his office made a criminal referral over a lack of cooperation from Norfolk Southern, the company at the center of the train derailment and subsequent chemical fallout in East Palestine, Ohio.

Local and state authorities previously evacuated all residents within one mile of the February 3 derailment and started a controlled burn of industrial chemicals on the vehicle to decrease the risk of an explosion, which could have sent shrapnel throughout the small town. Vinyl chloride, a known human carcinogen used to manufacture PVC, was emitted from five train cars in the form of massive plumes of dark smoke visible throughout eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania.

Shapiro remarked during an interview with NPR that executives from Norfolk Southern have demonstrated “arrogance and incompetence” in the weeks after the train derailment. “We made a criminal referral to the office of attorney general. They’ll determine whether or not there was criminal activity,” he said. “What I know is that Norfolk Southern is governed every day, not by caring about the communities that they send their trains through, but by corporate greed.”

Shapiro, inaugurated for his first term last month, previously said that Norfolk Southern attempted to silo authorities from Ohio and Pennsylvania into conducting the controlled burn of industrial chemicals so that the company could more promptly open the railroad. Norfolk Southern said in a statement to NPR that it is “committed to thoroughly and safely cleaning the site” and will reimburse “residents for the disruption this has caused in their lives.”

The EPA ordered Norfolk Southern earlier this week to handle the cleanup of contaminated soil and water, reimburse the EPA for cleaning services that will be offered to residents and businesses, and attend public meetings to update residents on the cleanup process. The agency also threatened to “immediately step in, conduct the necessary work, and then seek to compel Norfolk Southern to pay triple the cost” if the company does not fulfill its responsibilities.

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