Gov. M. Jodi Rell’s State of the State speech was curiously light on public policy initiatives at a moment in history that calls for dynamic leadership.
Considering the severity of the national economic storm and the potentially catastrophic damage it may inflict on Connecticut as well as the opportunities presented by President-elect Barack Obama’s proposed $800 billion economic stimulus plan, her address was feeble. She might as well have titled it “Leadership Lite.”
Let’s hope that’s the wrong way to look at it and that the soft speech is part of a bigger plan. Let’s hope the governor was merely buying time by making nice and working for advantages in preparation for the fierce budget battles that lie ahead.
Rell, a Republican, won’t have the luxury of dodging painful confrontations when she unveils her budget on Feb. 4.
She did at least hint at that reality in her State of the State when she said, “Government must shrink.”
Yes, it must. The state has a current deficit of nearly $350 million and a projected two-year deficit of $6 billion. The answer is not simply to raise taxes to cover the gigantic shortfall. The fact is that state government is too big, too inefficient and often ineffective. There’s no way to get into the black without deep cuts in state personnel and entitlement expenses.
But those cuts will need to be approved by a Democrat-controlled, veto-proof Legislature that will have a difficult time bucking state employee unions. Rell’s prospects for success on that front will depend heavily on her ability to convince House Speaker Chris Donovan, a former union representative, to see the big picture, to place the long-term interests of the state above narrow parochial interests.
But Rell is in no position to coerce Donovan, and so she has a tough sell.
Meanwhile, on another front, the governor is claiming the right to set the state’s project wish list for possible funding under the Obama stimulus plan. Various agencies and interest groups have already submitted their ideas, but her office has reserved the right to say what makes the final cut.
While up to half the other states have already submitted lists – and several have made them public – Rell says she’s still weeks away from turning hers in. And she and her Department of Transportation have been silent on the list’s priorities.
That secrecy is a concern for two reasons.
First, it stalls public debate on whether the state needs to push forward aggressively on the proposed New Haven-Hartford-Springfield passenger rail project. Obama has said he wants “shovel-ready” projects. If the rail project makes sense and preliminary steps need to be undertaken, time is of the essence.
Second, if the list is fashioned in secrecy, there’s greater temptation to insert special-interest projects that stray from the intent of the infrastructure spending initiative. The intent is to spend on projects that look to a future transportation system that is less dependent on new roads and more driving. So funding for repairs to existing roads and bridges and for alternative transportation such as the rail project should take precedence over building new highways.
When will Connecticut residents learn what is on the state’s infrastructure wish list that Rell will submit to Congress on their behalf?
Will Democrats in the state Legislature be satisfied with the level of input they are allowed on the infrastructure list? Or will they go into the budget negotiations with chips on their shoulders?
Rell and the state face not only a crushing economic crisis, but also an extraordinary opportunity. It’s time for decisive action. Her State of the State address was not an encouraging start. But she still has time to redeem herself.
