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WPCNR News Commentary. By John F. Bailey. March 11, 2008: This column was ready to go Monday morning. But, I thought, I’m being a little rough. There are a lot of good people in government Perhaps the column is just a little too cynical. So I held it back.
However, based on yesterday’s events, it appears I was even more naïve than I thought. In light of the New York State Governor’s indiscretions which he apologized for yesterday. The column was not harsh enough.
So here is that column adopted in light of the Governor’s sheepish apology yesterday, where he did not have the guts to take questions:
WPCNR was shocked…shocked by recent revelations that leaders of political committees use political committee contributions to pay for their cars, and many of their dinners. I mean how amateur and naive have I been? What does a political committee chair do, anyway at any party level? Some appear very well-fed and well-dressed, I’ll admit. But who knew some chairs bill their parties for entertainment, transportation and the like?
Yesterday we learned that even the Governor was not beneath giving himself some perks on the wild side. How long has this been going on?
Yesterday’s news that even Governor Eliot Spitzer, the “cleanest” of them all has feet of clay and is susceptible to the temptations that wealth and power may bring – that not so well-heeled folks would even dream about.
The governor just succumbs to those temptation(s) without giving it a second thought?
Until last Friday when he got a phone call or a visit from “the men in black,” he appears to never have given whatever proclivities he indulged himself in a second thought.
Like, maybe it was wrong? Did you ever think it was wrong, Mr. Governor? Did you ever feel guilty while indulging? And how often did you indulge?
Say it ain’t so, Eliot. But you didn’t. You apologized. Like Steve Martin’s “Excuuuuuuuuuuuse me” routine. As if that excuses his behavior.
Since Eliot the Governor, appears based on the federal court papers (being leaked so tantalizingly to the salivating media) to have spent time more than once in dealing with a very expensive piece of talent, (I mean what do you get for $1,000 an hour?)
Come on. Doesn’t the Governor have better things to do on his nights off – like reading up on the state budget, perhaps – which he has shown he does not even understand, based on his first budget — or at least could he have studied the illegal alien laws before he proposed them?
No, maybe he was arranging his next extra curricular recreation. To him, is being governor just like running a fraternity or a college boys club?
Didn’t Bill Clinton have better things to do than hitting or allowing himself to be hit on by a young woman half his age – like maybe fighting terrorism? Had he fought terrorism instead of thinking about an intern on Mr. and Mrs. America’s dollar, maybe 9-11 wouldn’t have happened. (Cheap shot? No, it is not. Clinton was a big show. That’s all. They all are.)
I have to laugh at the well-known attorney last night on television who suggested we pay far too much attention to the sexy episodes of people in power, indicating what they were doing was personal.
The point is missed. If you’re worrying about where your next pleasure hit is coming from, there’s something wrong with you. People depend on you to pay attention when you have the “Con.” (Navy talk for the helm).
I as a reporter, have to keep myself absolutely clean otherwise what would happen to my credibility – obviously if governors, Presidents, congresspersons, public elected officials and appointed ones are only worrying about their next libido lashing – then they are worrying about the wrong things.
They are children – whose ability to control themselves has not progressed beyond teen pornographic fantasies. But noooooooo, we should condone their reprobate libidinous weaknesses as “personal life.”
And what about the rest of the ugly news?
What do our party chairpersons, who’ve been revealed as receiving payments out of party funds, do as Party Chairs anyway? Do they think? Do they strategize? Do they plot? Do they excoriate possible candidates?
Apparently they like to eat dinner out a lot and drive around town “on party business” in big expensive cars that run contrary to the County’s new effort to lower CO2 emissions when they do eat dinner out.
But what party business do they do?
They apparently according to a story recently, use contributions to the party for supposedly party benefit – theirs. The sums for expenses and tasks these chairpersons get are nice pocket change, up to $25,000 and up for various expenses political party chairs filed for with their parties.
This is another example of “How to Make A Living in Government Without Ever Really Working.”
A county legislator our source quotes says the county will hire election workers this year to handle the fall elections, but says those who will be hired will be really “patronage.” These persons will presumably have experience in managing elections but they might not. If they are party hacks, they won’t have as much experience.
How incompetent can our governments get? Don’t ask. You don’t want to know.
Government Patronage is defined in the dictionary thusly: “The power to make appointments to government jobs on a basis other than merit alone.”
Let’s take a look at the benefits that come to you as a Party Chair.
I always thought when I was contributing to a party I was paying for phone banks, posters, brochures, polling, things that won elections or fought for truth, justice and the American Way.
But no, I am paying if I choose to contribute, for lunches, car leases, oh, man – the noive (as they say in Brooklyn) of these political parties. Do they all do it, or just the party chairs in “rogue” “loosey-goosey” organizations?
I’d like to take politicians to lunch and ask them questions. Like how come my taxes are going up $1,000 a year and they are not cutting the budget? I have not seen one budget cut.
I mean do we have to have party hacks go out to fancy-schmancy bistros to discuss political business? A smoke-filled room is much less expensive.
How about the parties give complete accounting of what they pay out and who they pay every penny to… every three months? That would be real election finance reform wouldn’t it?
Remember when the White Plains Democratic City Committee was almost evicted…and now meets at the YWCA? White Plains citizens have the right idea…give no money. Could White Plains be the only honest Democratic political committee anywhere? Other than cavalierly removing sitting councilpersons by not nominating them for a second term; other than nominating persons strangely connected to their county bosses they might be the most honest political committee anywhere, aside from the usual request for party loyalty at the cost of independence. But are they the most honest political committee around?
WPCNR wonders about taking the time to delve into this interesting sidelight. Who knew party chairs even got paid? How slick is this? What a stupid thing.
I naively felt that party chairs, except of course on the national level did not get paid. I guess I was born yesterday.
Now Governor Spitzer’s shenanigans coming to light – he investigated prostitution rings as attorney general. Was he patronizing high priced talent then? Did he compromise his investigations then?
You who contribute to parties actually thought you were contributing to parties to elect officials and to crusade for truth, justice and the American Way, didn’t you?
I know, I feel stupid too. Used. The Eliot Spitzers, the Bill Clintons, the Gary Harts, the McGreeveys, the Mark Foleys, the Wilbur Millses disgrace us all. I mean when you look at the number of persons in government caught playing around you have to wonder, really wonder if they are really paying attention to the job or just the perks that come with it – the cash, the favors, regardless of what they are.
On other hand, maybe, just maybe the individuals named in the party chair stories I originally wrote this column about are no longer pals with the county Democratic Party hierarchy.
Perhaps as one city official mentioned to me, “We used to have a saying when something happened to somebody like this. We’d say somebody dropped a dime on them.”
Just perhaps someone in power gave the paper a line of inquiry, I can hear it now, “Psst if you want a story you should investigate the money so-and-so takes out of the Democratic Party for expenses. Take a look at these.” Perhaps the documents detailing this party chair gravy train were slipped to the reporters. Believe me, it is very hard to get those kind of documents.
Imagine, saying, “Hi, I’m the CitizeNetReporter, could I have your financial records for the last six months?”
Which raises the question of how, all of a sudden Eliot Spitzer gets lit up like the Hindenburg.
I mean reporters follow Eliot Spitzer around all the time. Nobody noticed this behavior? If you’re really good at reporting you note things like how much the person you cover does not go home, how often he appears with his spouse, what he does with his family. You notice these things. Apparently nobody in media noticed — even when he was Attorney General.
However, the story on the party chairs, the governor’s apology Monday, underline the hubris of the politicians involved.
The party chair chumps actually accounted for the expenses in writing. How dopey. Should be strictly cash boys. At least, according to the federal investigation of Spitzer, they point out Mr. Spitzer used cash. But whose cash? Money talks, nobody walks. Least of all the person who is getting a vehicle leased by the party. Are you kidding me?
Well, now we know better. Any individual who contributes one more dollar to any political party in this area is a damn fool. The parties just use it to pay for parties, lunches, even their very own cars.
The subtle irony is the revelation that well-heeled individuals contribute equally to both parties.
Who knew? Why do they do that? Do you think they may be expecting a benefit, no matter who is in power or gets elected? Time to wake up and smell the bribery.
A Third Sewer System.
There is the sanitary sewer, the stormwater sewer, and now, there is the money sewer, where money flows to lawyers, architects, hangers-on, consultants, party workers, community leaders, and appropriately fawning individuals, and the occasional high priced service provider.
These are the individuals who can “play ball” and be “team players,” who are shifted into government jobs that require no work, just earnest public relations types who can say “You’re right, I’ll have to look into that” with conviction. That is just a few of the ways your tax dollars are used.
Breathe in the sweet reeking smell of patronage from the money sewer. It makes you sick and it is making our society sick and ineffectual.
When persons with no expertise get appointed to county departments for salaries and benefits of $100G’s – that’s patronage.
When persons with no experience or knowledge of election law get hired to run elections – that’s patronage.
When political contributors get a global warming study contract – that’s patronage.
When judges court persons declare are incompetent are reappointed – that’s patronage.
But, instead of shaking our heads when we see that politicians do not work for you, dear citizen, and being outraged — we read, cluck our tongues and keep working and voting for the same no talent hacks.
We explain it away, by saying that’s personal. A person is entitled to their private life no matter how sordid.
Baloney. Why do we do this?
Because the truth leaves too bitter a taste to be swallowed. It is a bitter taste that lingers.
Politics exists for the party hacks, the politicians who burn money like it was nothing, and do nothing for it! When they do things they spend too much for them and the systems don’t work.
They think they are entitled to spend our money and reward their friends, sycophants, paramours and contributors with no-show, no-do jobs, millions in contracts and projects. Because they are doing so much good.
When I think of the handwringing that certain organizations around town do when they need money, pleading for budget increases because they have shortfalls, and political parties plow out the money to individuals for parties, lunches, fundraisers, whatever, not to mention the sweetheart deals that make a gravy chain of well-connected professionals rich, it is sickening. It is immoral.
Politics is the profession of the professional parasite.
The professional parasite is the political hack.
Who is the hack?
It is the no-talent buddy who sucks up and pledges loyalty to those in power. Those in power reward professionals, not very good ones with jobs that are not needed, giving positions to these “hacks” as rewards for tasks and what have you, and their loyalty.
What is a hack? A person with no self-esteem or courage, who leaches on and swims with politicians and elected officials and is well-liked. And will compromise principles on demand. Very important!
He or she survives like a human pilot fish eating the scraps that the party machine money sharks chew up and spit out.
The big shark (Mr. or Ms. P — the powerful elected politician in charge) gorges on the rich green of tax payer dollars in the money sewer chum.
He or she is indiscriminate in whether they are greenbacks of developers, contributions of citizens, but he or she loves tax dollars. They never met a tax dollar they didn’t like.
Remember this people next time you learn of community organizations about to shut down because of lack of funds.
Ask the Democratic or Republican Party to give them a penny out of their coffers. Ask a politician to give out of his war chest to help you out.
Have they ever? If they did please advise the CitizeNetReporter. I don’t think so. Not often.
Remember next time the party invites you to a fund raiser. If you feel you must contribute, ask that you want a complete accounting to you in writing on what the dollars went for.
Why should you trust them?
They are your dollars, aren’t they?
But you do not understand. The politicians, the leaders, the people who run this city, county, state and federal governments and the school districts around the state do not think those dollars are yours.
They think it is their money that you have and that they should take it from you and spend it on themselves and their supporters because they are so much better and smarter than we are.
If they did care about you they would spend more wisely.
They really think that.
They are arrogant. Self-serving. Pathological liars.
The “I never had sex with that woman” utterance by the former President Clinton, comes to mind.
Now we have Governor Eliot Spitzer’s apology today. Apology? Gee, I’m sorry.
Now, is he to resign? Probably not. Unlike some cultures who when disgracing themselves publicly commit suicide out of shame. American politicians have no shame. Their first thought is to protect their pension and their power.
The recent quote from one of our local leaders, County Executive Andrew Spano, addressing Governor Spitzer’s Commission on Property Tax Reform, is wonderful in demonstrating the pathological intent to obfuscate, to wit:
“In times like this, Westchester County government tightens its own belt by finding ways to reduce costs, trim expenses, and become more cost-efficient and effective. The one thing we don’t do is shift county costs down to our localities.”
Really? Isn’t this a hoot?
This is the County Executive who has not lowered the tax increase he put in for2008 to maintain services in the face of what he thought was a sales tax shortfall. Since that time the sales tax came in much closer to predictions. Has he lowered the tax increase? What do you think?
No. He has generated a nice little surplus with that little sleight of hand on the sales tax handle. His legislators went right along for the cash ride.
Chairman Thomas Suozi, who runs Nassau County and listened to Mr. Spano make that statement, must have had a hard time keeping a straight face.
I want to thank Executive Spano for providing such a great example of saying things that simply are poppycock, but sound so good.
What politicians say may be obviously untrue, but they think it is true and so to them it is not a lie.
We want to believe them. We so want to believe them that we do.
We accept when they say one thing and do another because we think they made “a tough decision” and did their due diligence.
This need for us to believe is the political hack’s ultimate weapon.
Us.
We want to believe our government officials are helping us and want to help us.
We so want to believe they care about us. That Hilary or Bill or Chuck or Eliot or Joe and Andy love us and are working for us.
The reality of the incompetence that they represent, the lack of principles, is too sobering to contemplate for too long without feeling a sense of doom and dispair.
Especially when columns like this are written year after year, and it does not matter to the citizens who read them.
Forgive them, for they do not know whom they elect.
