You just can’t make this stuff up:
A certain national political candidate has intimated that the federal government would “save” steel jobs in Greater Pittsburgh if U.S. Steel tries to eliminate them in the aftermath of any rejection of Nippon Steel’s proposed, and now stalled, subsumption of it.
A federal foreign investment panel is scrutinizing the $14.something billion deal (that number has been fluctuating between $14.1 and $14.9 billion) for possible “national security” and “supply chain” concerns.
But U.S. Steel has been adamant that it likely would move its Pittsburgh corporate headquarters and effectively pull the plug on remaining Pittsburgh-area steel operations in dire need of upgrades should the merger be rejected.
So, in the name of political expediency, parties of the government and their proxies would scuttle what by any standard is a solid, market-based way to retain U.S. Steel’s corporate presence and steelworker jobs in favor of what essentially would be a government bailout/takeover propped up by taxpayer dollars?
And the Mush for Brains Award goes to?
Allegheny County Controller Corey O’Connor has released an “interim report” showing spending is out of control in county government.
Per a Post-Gazette story:
“O’Connor has released findings that project about a $1 million drop in revenue and a $57 million or $58 million increase in expenses for the current fiscal year if current conditions continue. …
“Various departments are projected to be hundreds of thousands — if not millions — of dollars over their original budgets by the time the current year’s budget is completed,” the P-G says.
O’Connor also cites the now oft-detailed and chronically worrying declining revenues coming into county coffers.
County Executive Sara Innamorato is scheduled to present her new budget this coming Tuesday. Of course, raising taxes to offset the combination of less revenue and higher spending would be the exact wrong public policy.
The question is if our “leaders” have the courage to do what’s right. And that’s to cut spending, not merely to previously budgeted levels blown through but to lower levels across the board.
Colin McNickle is communications and marketing director at the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy (cmcnickle@alleghenyinstitute.org).
