No more errands
Legislature spends $500,000 to look good Recently, the report of the statewide grand jury investigating legislative corruption was released.
It “revealed” to Gov. Ed Rendell, who claimed he had been unaware, that 35 workers within PennDOT hold jobs costing the taxpayers more than $500,000 a year only so they can make legislators look good by “expediting” citizens’ requests to renew their driver licenses, vehicle registrations, etc.
Memo to Pennsylvanians: Those of us too stupid to figure out how to renew those items ourselves are too stupid to drive.
Steve Miskin, spokesman for State Rep. Sam Smith and House Republicans, wailed to the Philadelphia Inquirer that constituents “come to our offices because they have a problem.” “What are we supposed to do, turn them away?” he asked.
Well, yes.
What if the “constituent” wants the legislator to fill out the constituent’s state tax forms? Or perhaps the constituent wants the legislator to buy (winning) lottery tickets for him or her?
Yes. Turn them away. People incapable of filling out those forms are unlikely to vote in sufficient numbers to determine the result of an election. PennDOT has an entire appeals staff in place to handle these things. If Penn-DOT is totally wrong … sue.
“I am a legislator, not your errand boy (or girl).” Tell them that.
But they’ll be offended!
Well, we are offended – by a $1 billion or bigger state budget deficit, by 35 lackeys in PennDOT spending taxpayer money to make legislators look good, by staffers in the legislators’ district offices paid for by the taxpayers (there goes another $1 million or so) just to handle “constituent services.”
It’s time we grew up.
No, it’s past that time. Legislators should write legislation, amend legislation, debate legislation, vote on legislation.
They shouldn’t be running errands. No, not even one errand, “it’ll just take a minute.”
No wonder we spend way too much money on state government.
(DuBois) Courier-Express