The first place to save money in the next state budget

Remember the Office of State and Federal Relations and the partisan DeLay-connected lobbyists that were hired by Governor Perry to supplant them? (Sure you do - see here and here for background.) Well, the Statesman remembers them, and they call on the governor they endorsed to fire them now that we're living with a Democratically-controlled Congress.

Now that the Democrats will control the agenda in the Capitol, the Republican lobbyists the state's leaders hired can only hurt Texans, not help them. It was a mistake when Gov. Rick Perry chose to hire lobbyists connected to DeLay, now languishing in disgrace and facing criminal charges, and the Washington lobby he cultivated. It's a bigger mistake to continue to pay them $15,000 a month.

Texas is already represented in Congress by the state's Office of State-Federal Relations, an office with a full-time staff to look out for state interests. But pushing the partisan line espoused by DeLay, Perry cut that staff and awarded contracts to the Federalist Group and Cassidy & Associates.

A chief lobbyist with the Federalist Group is Drew Maloney, a former chief of staff under DeLay who donated thousands of dollars to defeat Texas Democrats. Among those Democratic Party targets was U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards of Waco, now this state's most powerful member of Congress.

Another state-paid lobbyist is Todd Boulanger, a former associate of the infamous Jack Abramoff, convicted of conspiring to bribe public officials. Both Maloney and Boulanger are Republican Party stalwarts who actively worked to defeat Democrats. It cannot help Texans to have them representing the state before a Democratically controlled Congress.

Using taxpayer money to pay private, partisan lobbyists was a dubious strategy to begin with. Now that the worm has turned in Washington, Perry's decision could be disastrous for Texas. These lobby firms ignored Democrats all year - and worse, worked to defeat them - and the Democrats won't forget it.

Democratic leaders have asked Perry to dump these wasteful contracts with tainted lobbyists and let the Office of State-Federal Relations handle the state's lobby work in the new Congress. Perry should heed that advice.

What will it be, Governor? Fiscal responsibility and political sanity, or a continued handout to an undeserving firm that won't do anyone who isn't on the gravy train any good? The choice is yours.

Posted by Charles Kuffner on November 14, 2006 to Budget ballyhoo | TrackBack