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Finance Minister Diana Whalen said earlier this week that the provincial budget would contain few surprises and she lived up to that promise Thursday.

Whalen introduced a $9.9-billion budget with a $279-million deficit. The document contains a collection of announcements from the Liberals election campaign platform, as well as some new initiatives, with about $80 million in new spending. Department spending increased overall by 5.4 per cent, or $455 million.

The net debt is estimated to be $14.6 billion as of March 31. Its projected to top $15 billion in the next fiscal year.

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The numbers say what Nova Scotians already know: the status quo isnt working, Whalen said. The hard truth is that we have significant challenges and a steep hill to climb.

Much of the department spending resulted from increased service pressures as well as negotiated wage increases, said Whalen. The minister said there would need to be a new approach to wage agreements, which cost about $50 million per percentage increase.

We just cant afford those kind of pressures, she said. We all need to work together to recognize we have a problem and together we can fix it. When things improve, we can offer bigger increases.

The Liberals are hanging a lot of importance on a review of taxes, regulations and fees that wont be complete until autumn. As such, Whalen said more significant changes would come in future budgets.

As for whats in this one, the majority of new spending focuses on education and health.

The Liberals will spend $32.6 million on home-care support, $10.6 million on doctor recruiting and training with a focus on rural areas, and $1.9 million for improved access to oncology and other drugs.

Originally posted here:

Liberals stick to playbook with first $9.9-billion budget

Kay Hagan speaks to Young Democrats
Friday - March 28th - Kay Hagan spoke to Young Democrats at a closed reception at the Greenville Convention Center.

By: WNCT-TV 9 On Your Side

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Kay Hagan speaks to Young Democrats - Video

Democrats Calling For Study On Federal-Worker Morale - Cavuto
Smith: Democrats Should Focus On The Declining Morale Of Taxpayers Democrats Calling For Study On Federal-Worker Morale - Cavuto ============================...

By: Mass Tea Party

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Democrats Calling For Study On Federal-Worker Morale - Cavuto - Video

MSNBC: Democrats Are Still Running From ObamaCare
MSNBC: 2014 Democrats Are Still Running From ObamaCare (April 2, 2014)

By: GOPICYMI

Originally posted here:

MSNBC: Democrats Are Still Running From ObamaCare - Video

WASHINGTON Democrats struggling to combat a flood of outside money pouring in to defeat their candidates have found at least a temporary solution: If you can't beat them, brand them.

The latest strategy of Democratic messaging is tying Republican candidates and policies to the party's most prominent and at times vilified financial patrons, billionaire industrialists Charles and David Koch.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) initiated the strategy last month when he decried the brothers whose last name is pronounced "coke" from the Senate floor as "shadowy billionaires" and "un-American."

This week, after Rep. Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) released his new austere budget, Reid described it as a blueprint for a "modern Kochtopia."

And when the Supreme Court on Wednesday struck down overall limits on how much wealthy donors can spend per congressional election, Reid said it was no surprise, "because as you know the Koch brothers are trying to buy America."

It's a campaign strategy that serves several purposes for Democrats, and strategists say the effort is already paying off in grass-roots fundraising and by helping the party crystallize a message against the GOP.

On Thursday, Koch Industries Chief Executive Charles Koch felt compelled to respond and, in a Wall Street Journal op-ed piece, likened the Democratic campaign to "character assassination."

And Republicans dismissed the effort as a sign of Democratic desperation, predicting it would not prevent a GOP takeover of the Senate after the midterm election this fall. They point to a recent George Washington University Battleground poll that found Reid actually had lower favorability ratings than the Kochs and that only 48% of voters had even heard of the brothers.

"It's about the biggest example of distraction politics that I've ever seen," said Levi Russell, a spokesman for the Koch-funded political advocacy group Americans for Prosperity. "Folks care a lot more about how Obamacare is impacting their daily lives than what some senator says on the Senate floor."

But following Reid's lead, other Democrats are now rallying behind his mantra that the GOP is "addicted to Koch."

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Democrats target Republican ties to Koch brothers