Officials spent three days last week in Chicago, Ill., attending the American Legislative Exchange Council’s (ALEC) annual meeting and hearing from states across the country in the spirit of federalism. Government officials and policy experts addressed our group on issues ranging from education reform and government transparency, to tax and fiscal policy, to climate and weather.
Although I did not encounter any demonstrators, Associated Press reporter David Lieb attended the event (thanks, David) and reported a significant presence. The demonstrators brought to mind a quote belonging to Milton Friedman included in a prior Capitol Report: “One of the great mistakes is to judge policies and programs by their intentions, rather than their results. We all know a famous road that is paved with good intentions. The people who go around talking about their 'soft heart,' — I admire them for the softness of their heart, but very often it extends to their head as well.”
One ALEC member reported that he was followed by a protestor spouting profanity, but rather than escape, he patiently recounted the ALEC mission statement (which I have noted above) to the demonstrator. The protester said he supported those things and really didn’t know why he was demonstrating. The brief conversation illustrates the difference between those who espouse ideology without referencing results and those who celebrate success — more succinctly, liberalism vs. conservatism. ALEC has been around for decades; its modern infamy is no doubt the result of the striking successes that are enjoyed by states that have adopted and experienced the benefits from policies that were debated and refined within the ALEC legislative model.
Our neighbor, Kansas, for example, has seen unemployment decrease by more than 23 percent, from 7.2 to 5.5 percent, while Missouri’s unemployment remains stubbornly at 6.6 percent. In “Rich States, Poor States,” a comparison of state economies conducted by Stephen Moore, Jonathan Williams, and Arthur Laffer, Kansas moved up 15 spots to 11th nationally, while Missouri fell from seventh to 23rd place in the same time period. Still, our governor makes claims that Kansas’ style reforms will cost us our credit rating as he lobbies to protect his veto of HB 253, which although a very modest reform, moves Missouri in the right direction and is consistent with the successes enjoyed by other states.
The “Rich State, Poor State” rankings — you can read more about these rankings and state economies by reading this article by William Freeland — are based on state GDP growth, population shifts, and changes in non-farm payroll jobs between 2001 and 2011, according to Investor’s Business Daily, and shows Texas outperforming every other state in the nation on jobs and growth. Texas comptroller Susan Combs was a keynote speaker during ALEC’s annual meeting and shared how Texas is producing success. At the same session, former AccuWeather chief forecaster, Joe Bastardi, explained the significance of basing climate analysis and predictions on science, rather than ideology and emotion. His renowned success in forecasting provides unusual credibility in climate discussions.
Experts involved from other fields included Dr. Richard Vedder of Ohio University, Dr. Arthur Laffer, Dr. Barry Poulson of Colorado University, Stephen Moore of The Wall Street Journal, Victor Schwartz of the University of Cincinnati College of Law, Dr. Matt Mitchell of the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, Dr. Tim Nash of Northwood University, and others. States that have achieved extraordinary successes described their results and prescribed how other states could experience similar improvements — Iowa, Oklahoma, Mississippi, and Florida. In the arena of education reform and funding, we learned from Gov. Jeb Bush of Florida that since 1950, the number of adults in public education has increased four times the rate of students and that the increase in administrators and non-teaching personnel has been sevenfold. Since 1998, illiteracy rates among Florida third graders has been cut in half, and fourth graders have advanced two grade levels in reading — far above the American average. Florida teacher unions neither celebrated nor even recognized these achievements, because student success was perceived as a threat to union leaders. It means that success works.
It was pointed out to reporter David Lieb that the difference between ALEC and left-leaning organizations is that ALEC focuses on successes achieved and how to proliferate them via federalism and state legislative action. Other organizations too often suffer from Stockholm syndrome and defend the very policies that condemn their states to mediocrity or worse. Where individual liberty and economic freedom dwell, success invades, and ALEC is where those successes are celebrated and shared. In an era of term limits, ALEC helps keep state government’s focus on “We the People…” and the proper role of government.
Another good reference distributed at the Chicago conference that highlights state economics and the dangers of excessive government spending is Peter Ferrara’s article, “Progressive Keynesian Myths Debunked: The Coming Redistribution of Political and Economic Power Among the States,” published in Forbes Magazine.
I appreciate you reading this legislative report, and please don’t hesitate to contact my office at (573) 751-2108 if you have any questions. Thank you and God bless.
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