No matter the who the legislator is, when they get elected to a state office, they become a government trough feeder. What's the solution?
Legislators should always be careful when they vote to improve their own benefits, but never more so than when the economy is taking a hit.
Boy, did South Carolina lawmakers get it wrong this week when they voted to increase their own pensions at about the same time they torpedoed plans to raise state workers' pay and to buy much-needed new school buses.
What a classic example of getting the priorities wrong --- in the words of Gov. Mark Sanford, an "almost unbelievable show of disdain for the taxpayers of South Carolina."
Maybe it was just a case of the right hand not knowing what the left hand was doing, or perhaps simply not paying attention. In any event, there's no excuse for it, and here's how it happened:
The House gave the final OK to the pension boost -- the Senate approved it last year -- as part of a cost-of-living hike for all state retirees. Meanwhile, because of a slowing economy and weaker-than-expected revenues, the Senate's budget-writing panel was slashing workers' wage hikes and funds for new school buses to cover a $90 million shortfall in this year's budget and a $40 million gap in next year's spending plan.
Lawmakers explained that the invested money that pays for pensions comes from a different source than the cash used in the state's roughly $7 billion budget. So what? Taxpayers' money is taxpayers' money, no matter where it comes from or what it's called.
To the governor, and we suspect to most Palmetto State taxpayers, lawmakers looked like they were boosting their pensions through the back door. Besides, as Sanford pointed out, legislators' pensions already are extremely generous -- in fact, three times more generous than that given to the average state employee.
But give legislators credit for acquiescing to Sanford's prodding that they revisit the pension issue -- at least the part of it affecting them. Of course revisiting isn't enough. Legislators don't need this raise, particularly at this time. They should declare they made a mistake, and flat-out repeal it.
Comments
No matter the who the legislator is, when they get elected to a state office, they become a government trough feeder. What's the solution?
Print the roll-call tabulation and let us, the taxpayers see who voted for this greedy grab. They will need their pensions quicker than they think they do. I bet "silver-spoon fed 'Skip' Perry" got his greedy fingers in there. Like he needs the money as he goes out the door.
You got me on that one patriciathomas...Unbelievable but not unexpected..It seems most politicians get into office look around then yell out "Yahoo who's buying it's party time and remember don't worry be happy the sheep are paying" :..... Well one day that party is going to come to an end. I am a firm believer that what goes around comes around...
too true justus4, too true.
Damn Justus, for once I agree 100% (gasp).
Not much different than many our nation's Congressmen and women. Seems they're looking out for themselves and forgetting that they were elected to serve and not be served.
No Surprise at ALL! I know this may sound like an "I told ya so" story, but well this is just that trickle down theory that Republicans have come up with and roll crap downhill for the Democrats that think that it should be higher taxes instead of tax rebates. To counter each other out, we as taxpayers are stuck in the middle of this snowballing. In fact, Bush gives us a tax rebate and says that we are to rely on the trickle down theory to help us with our economy. The Democratic crappers say, Bush you are out of line, we need to increase our taxes cause we are going bankrupt, so the states all increase their taxes while the federal government gives us this tax break. By the time we get it from Federal, we are soooooo broke, that our tax rebates that are suppose to stimulate our economy will just be a reimbursement to our tax increase by the state. Yep, our trickle down theory works all right........LOL.
OOOohhhh Yeah, I forgot to tell you...Their pensions take presidence over your wage increases, so spend wisely.
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