Grade the Administration: Adam Lang
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Grade the Administration: Adam Lang
It's Our Money is asking various experts and advocates to grade the Nutter administration on its performance in the budget process -- it's handling of the process, and the quality of the budget it ultimately got, given the circumstances. This assessment is from Adam Lang, a Republican activist who fights for open and ethical government in Philadelphia.
Grade: D (with extra credit)
Comments: The first thing that has to be kept in mind is that the national economy didn’t create our budget problems this year, it merely expedited them. The gas leak was already there, the economy only lit the match. Pensions were already underfunded, health and pension costs were already out of control, tax collections were already a disaster, the size of government had been increasing and Mayor Nutter had even spent our entire reserves from an existing cash surplus in his first year's budget.
With that in mind, Mayor Nutter’s handling of this year’s budget was filled with more bad policy that broke many of his campaign promises. Ending Philadelphia’s reign as “most taxed city”? He raised taxes. Fixing pension underfunding? He added $65 million in payments by putting off obligations to the future. Improving public safety? He threatened to lay off hundreds of police officers.* Building a better relationship with Harrisburg? The rest of the state is angrier with us than ever. The only reason I'm not failing him is that he was working with the lodestone City Council put around his neck. His initial budget plans weren't great, but they were better than the Council-approved final result.
*This sentence was corrected. It originally stated that the mayor threatened to lay off 3,000 police officers, which is not true.
Previous Grade the Administrations: Sharon Ward, Fatimah Ali, Larry Ceisler, Phil Goldsmith
very thoughtful article. The city administration is bankrupt; both financially and morally.— tombstone713
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- Adam Lang may be one, if not the only, youngest, brightest minds in Philly politics. Cleanuphilly spends so much time whining about the people that owe back taxes, that he does not know who the people actually trying to make progress actually are.— mikeyg
- Adam is a Republican activist who is involved with efforts to remake the local party. He's work has appeared in the Daily News and also on various blogs. Smart guy, even if I disagree with him about most things.— benwaxman
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- I am not commenting on his post, I am just saying that him and I disagree on most issues....local, state, and national.— benwaxman
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- Lang is a member of The Loyal Opposition. See Philly mag article here: http://www.phillymag.com/articles/philadelphia_republic_party_this_party_sucks/— Kaiser Sosa
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- CleanupPhilly, do you have a job? I don't think I've seen anyone else post so many comments on so many articles. Not that I don't appreciate your point of view, but I seriously wonder sometimes how you have the time to spend 20-30 minutes posting 10 comments on some of these articles.— phillyskyline
- Cleanup - You should make it out to one of the Loyal Opposition events. Read the article about them in this months Philly Mag. Your kind of people I would venture to guess. Trying to shine daylight on the corruption that plagues both parties in this city.— Kaiser Sosa
- Article right on the money. We can start changing -- really changing -- the way this city is being run by electing a new City Controller this year. Al Schmidt is a sharp, experienced guy who will be enrelentingly tough on Nutter and his minions. Let's elect him and start the turnaround of this great city.— Parksguy
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- Philadelphia would be a better place if he wwere my councilman rather than Clarke— dreinterests
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- Anyone interested in knowing more about me can go to my website at www.adamlang.com. It has a variety of my writings, when I have been published and my background. And Ben is correct. We both may not always agree on the same policies, but we both have a goal of a better and stronger Philadelphia. From that common ground we can all work out the details.— Adam Lang
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