Misguided Attempt

Governor Brad Henry is leading the latest charge in a pathetic attempt to lure GM into staying in OKC via a taxpayer funded corporate welfare check. This is to the tune of a cool $200 million!

The proceeds would be tied to a plant re-tooling project, aimed at changing the plants output from SUV's to something with more demand. Sure looks like we would be glossing over a major corporate blunder to me. Any bailout would have to be approved by the Oklahoma legislature. Is that any comfort?

This is terrible public policy.

And I predict it won't work.

Tulsans know full well about this type of shenanigans. Don't we remember the picture of Mayor LaFortune et al groveling in front of the Doubletree awhile ago in an attempt to keep Citgo from moving to Houston?

No doubt, politicians need to be involved in economic development. Jobs are extremely important. But this corporate welfare, long a policy of the Federal government amounts to just political grandstanding. It has no substance.

Corporate boards of directors make decisions like shutting down a plant or relocating headquarters. Boeing certainly didn't change their minds with Tulsa's attempted welfare bribe. In fact, they sold out what we had already and now plan to build something in OKC! I wonder......did Kathy Taylor have anything to do with that?

American Airlines got some welfare too. But they really weren't planning to leave. So they got a free check courtesy of the taxpayers of Tulsa County.

With the cat out of the bag, who else will line up with their hand out waiting for a pot of gold at the expense of the taxpayer? Who among our elected officials will decide who gets what and how much?