The incumbent Democrat and her Libertarian challenger have very different views on government's role.
published October 31, 2002
Libertarian candidate Rex Curry and Democrat Arthenia L. Joyner agree
the residents of state House District 59, one of the poorest districts
in Florida, need help. They agree on nothing else.
Curry, a sixth-generation Floridian, said that the unchecked growth of
government has actually harmed its citizens.
"Poor people hurt the most from taxes on goods and services, and from
the loss of jobs when businesses are taxed and cannot grow," said Curry,
a Tampa lawyer.
Joyner, a lawyer in Tampa since 1969, has dedicated much of her life to
boards and agencies that serve the once vital and now blighted inner
city. In a district that is nearly 60 percent black and 59 percent
female, Joyner was elected in 2000 with 70 percent of the vote.
She focused on economic development issues, which she sees as central to
revitalizing the depressed east Tampa community.
Curry lives in the district, but his recipe for improving the plight of
its needy residents is to shrink government. The state's population has
doubled during the last quarter-century, he said, but the budget has
increased more than 1,000 percent during the same period.
So why aren't people better off, he asked.
"In a healthy society, the need for government should constantly
decrease as we solve our problems," Curry said. "The marketplace is how
you make intelligent decisions. People spending their own money."
Joyner said the Legislature faces a budget crisis this coming year as it
struggles to "fund recurring programs with nonrecurring funds." New
taxes are already being discussed, she said, though it would be
preferable to handle shortfalls with belt-tightening.
Curry proposes strangulation rather than belt-tightening.
"I encourage people to remove their children from government schools,"
he said. "My goal is to get them their money back."