Speaker Don Scott, Senate Finance/Appropriations Committee Chair Louise Lucas Fire Back Against Glenn Youngkin’s False Claim That the Budget They Passed Is “Backward”

As usual, if Glenn Youngkin’s lips are moving, he’s almost certainly lying and/or distorting the facts. In this case, Youngkin is falsely claiming that the budget passed by the Virginia House of Delegates and State Senate this past week is “backward.” See below for some responses to that, including:

• Speaker Don Scott notes that 11 Republicans in the House of Delegates “joined Democrats to vote for a responsible budget.”
• Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee Chair Louise Lucas explains: “Governor Youngkin with his corporate raider mentality would weaken Virginia’s government if he was left to his own devices. His budget was not structurally balanced. He would starve the future by not funding K-12 appropriately. Youngkin had the real ‘backwards budget’.” Also, obviously (or at least it SHOULD be obvious to anyone with any sense), “Educating children IS competing to win.

Also, see this press release from the Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis, which explains:

“Just 11 weeks ago, Governor Youngkin tried to sell Virginia a tax package that would have given big tax breaks to millionaires, raised taxes on families with low incomes, and cut critical public school funding. Just this past week, he doubled down on his tax package and made a case for cutting historic funding that each chamber proposed for our public schools.

“Thankfully, under the leadership of Chair Lucas and Chair Torian, budget conferees soundly rejected the worst of the governor’s tax package and instead proposed big investments in public education, health care, and more. This proposed budget is a strong step in the right direction to invest in our communities and create opportunities for all families to thrive.

So yeah, Youngkin actually believes that “bit tax breaks to millionaires,” higher taxes “on families with low incomes,” cuts to “critical public school funding,” etc. is the way to go. In fact, Youngkin’s vision for Virginia is regressive, harmful, and…yes, one that would take us backward.  Thank goodness Democrats are in charge of the legislature, as a brick wall against Youngkin’s many (really) bad ideas.