I saw Governor Bob McDonnell on Larry Kudlow’s CNBC show Tuesday evening.
McDonnell couldn’t have been more pleased as Kudlow lobbed him a number of softballs about what he’s been doing since taking office in January.
In fact, Kudlow couldn’t have been more effusive about McDonnell’s fiscal policies, at one point calling McDonnell an “absolutely rising star in the Republican firmament.”
For his part, McDonnell handled himself well.
I found two points of particular interest.
The first was McDonnell’s summary of the session, the one-liner that he hopes will become part of his legacy.
“I closed a $4 billion budget shortfall without raising taxes.”
Not bad. I can easily imagine the line being used in the “legacy” pieces written as he leaves office.
This is especially true in 2010 given the rising public concern about excessive spending. (McDonnell’s challenge, of course, will be to square this accomplishment with his promise to make significantly more progress than his predecessors in funding transportation. )
What I found equally interesting was how McDonnell responded to a question that Kudlow posed regarding cuts to the state workforce and retirement system.
Referring to the efforts of Chris Christie in New Jersey to renegotiate union contracts and redo the state retirement system, Kudlow asked McDonnell if he was taking a similar hard line on these issues.
McDonnell noted the pension reforms that that had been initiated for new state employees and the need to establish a retirement system that would be sustainable over the long haul.
But on the issue of the state workforce, McDonnell had nothing but praise for state employees, lauding them for their hard work and noting what had accomplished despite not having received adequate raises over the past decade.
It might not have been quite the answer Kudlow expected, but it’s one that should play very well in Richmond.
Since Financial World recognized Virginia as the best managed state in the country two year’s running during the Wilder administration, the Commonwealth has continued to receive accolades as one of the best run states in the nation.
The hard working, unsung people who work in state government have a lot to do with this.
And McDonnell was smart to acknowledge them.
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