In the Legislature, any attempt to redesign the existing system by examining certain constitutional provision that deter new investments is immediately relegated to the dead file by stuck-in-the-mud legislators, punishing the economy and its citizens in the name of “culture.” History is littered with the traces of countries that didn’t emerge from economic stagnation for decades, with devastating results for their people. Commerce is the means by which societies provide for the welfare of its people. Even countries with a half century tradition of communism have come to learn this.
Considering how bad the economy is, one would think lawmakers would invite debate on economic measures and let these come before the general public for examination. Instead, the Legislature buries these issues and pretends they have nothing to do with commerce or economics or in any way impact on the livelihood of the people of the commonwealth.
What exactly has this Legislature done to bring in new investments, reduce government expenses and prepare the commonwealth for the coming “deluge” — the federalization of local immigration, which will spell the end of the local economy as we know it.
The Legislature, first of all, must enact a new budget. It must override the governor’s expected veto of the budget bill that will clip his ability to spend and hire in an election year.
Lawmakers should also pass the legislative initiatives that will help ensure fiscal responsibility: the proposal, for example, requiring an annual budget The gargantuan federal government shuts down if a budget agreement is not reached within a specific period of time, and continuing resolutions only work for so long. The feds don’t authorize the multi-year continuing resolution system operable in the CNMI that have allowed lawmakers not to perform their primary task, which is to ensure that the government spends only what it collects.
Right now, elected officials on Capital Hill are pinning all their hopes on the new congressional delegate, instead of drafting and passing local measures that are urgently needed.
As for the congressional delegate, it has struck some people as interesting that he would have opted for membership on committees that deal with health and education and whose budget allocations are generally based on population. Why didn’t he try to join the committees on transportation or homeland security ? These are the panels where he could cultivate some interest and perhaps spur action on some of the CNMI’s immigration and airline matters so crucial to the economic survival of these islands.
These are sad times for the commonwealth, and there are even sadder times ahead of us, but opportunities abound to make things a little better, if only there was a leader willing to seize them.
