WASHINGTON ? “We?re broke.” You can practically break a search engine if you start looking around the Internet for those words. They?re used repeatedly with reference to our local, state and federal governments, almost always to make a case for slashing programs ? and lately to go after public employee unions. The phrase is designed to create a sense of crisis that justifies rapid and radical actions before citizens have a chance to debate the consequences. Just one problem: We?re not broke.
Office of Strategic Communication