Riding the wave of recent polls showing him gaining ground on Gov. Jan Brewer, Democrat Terry Goddard drops a press release that pulls the money quote from a report that puts Arizona's 48th on the list of well-run states:
Our writers looked at hundreds of data sets ranging from debt rating agency reports to violent crime rates, unemployment trends and median income... Arizona, showing up near the end of our rankings, suffers most severely from its poor S&P rating of AA-, which is second only to California, and the fact that between 2006 and 2009, occupied home prices dropped 20.6%. Aside from these two points the state does not have particularly low standing in any category. It ranks so low because of its poor ratings in all categories."
Check out the full report here. It's another dismal assessment of our ongoing economic catastrophe.
Goddard's comment:
Jan Brewer's failed leadership has been well-documented, but this report is an indictment of her inability to manage Arizona. We don't need an independent analysis to tell us that our state is facing an economic crisis and that Gov. Brewer's approach to solving it—holding a few meetings, and sprinkling out federal stimulus dollars—is a pathetic response.Jan Brewer has failed to balance the budget, she has failed to attract new jobs, she has failed to secure
our prisons, she has devastated Arizona's tourism industry, and now she is planning even more drastic cuts to our schools. The ultimate message of this latest report is clear: Jan Brewer has failed to do the job, and it is time to elect someone who can."