FICKER

AMENDMENT

HAS COUNTY

OFFICIALS "KICKING

THEMSELVES"

...AND YOU!

Voters and Disabled Police Officers

Blamed by Democrats and Washington Post

for Passage of New Taxpayer Protection

The Washington Post keeps telling us that our all-Democrat elected officials are "kicking themselves" for "allowing" Robin Ficker's tax amendment to pass on November 4. But it seems that those Rockville Democrats - and their close friends at the Post - are kicking others besides themselves.

Our elected officials have shown a contempt for the voter in Montgomery County once again. According to them, we are not intelligent enough to vote on our own. They believe that we voted to pass the Ficker Amendment only because they didn't tell us it was bad. The message is that the voters are mindless and must be prompted how to vote by our all-knowing Big Government.

Preposterous. The amendment was actually the only one on the ballot that stated exactly what it was. Bravo to Mr. Ficker for what is not only a major victory for the taxpayer, but solid evidence that county residents want the fiscal responsibility that Republicans can offer. Now they need to elect Republicans to the council once again in 2010.

Unfortunately, The Washington Post went even further in a bizarre explanation for why voters passed the Ficker Amendment: the Post says it was because voters were thinking about disabled cops. In the Post's twisted view of the world, it is outlandish for a disabled police officer to ask for disability benefits when he or she retires.

But let the Post speak for itself:

"No doubt many voters also may have had in mind [that] more than 60 percent
of Montgomery police officers" received disability benefits. The Post goes
on to say that the majority of retiring officers "are gaming the system and
taking taxpayers for a costly ride."

The Post never misses a chance to criticize any police department, or to praise a criminal. So these nasty attacks are not a surprise.

But what do the attempts of the County Council and the Post to blame Democrat mismanagement of our county's finances on disabled police officers have to do with the Ficker Amendment passing?

I'm as confused as you are.

It's time for the Post, Ike Leggett, and the County Council to admit the facts: they have mismanaged the government, blown the budget apart with tax and spend policies and political paybacks, and now the voters have had enough. This year's massive property tax, parking, and fee increases were quite simply the last straw. Montgomery residents aren't going to take this abuse from their Democrat government anymore.

This was a calling card.

But in November 2010, Republicans will be at the door of power in Rockville.