Monday, July 07, 2008
Sabludowsky confirms that Jindal traded pay raises for vouchers
Steven Sabludowsky of
Bayou Buzz confirms what Clancy DuBos
reported, and what
Ryan at the Daily Kingfish suspected back in June: Jindal traded pay raises for school vouchers. Sabludowsky
writes: Recently, I had a long talk with a legislator, who I will label as “Legislator X”. Legislator X told me (off the record) that the deal for the pay raise was the “vouchers” legislation. In other words, Jindal wanted success with his school voucher legislation and so he let the legislature do what they wanted to do regarding the pay raise. Were there other deals? We do not know. But, this one legislator identified the vouchers and I believe this legislator would be in a very good position to have a good idea what was occurring behind the scenes. Bobby Jindal, if he really wanted transparency in government should tell the public what occurred... The public deserves an answer.
Since political pressure forced Jindal to renege on his end of the pay raise/voucher deal, the pertinent question at this point is: What new "deals" (if any) did Jindal make with the Leges he shafted?
At least Sabludowsky and Clancy are in the ballpark on this one. Political analyst
John Maginnis is a little slow on the uptake (NYT link has been added):
Jindal was being vilified on talk radio and the Internet by once-fervent supporters, who had just as fervently turned against him over his stubborn refusal to veto the pay raise bill. His own words from his flawless gubernatorial campaign -- a pledge to prohibit the Legislature from taking the raise the way it did -- had returned to haunt and mock him. The national VP short-list buzz was muffled by a New York Times story in which he was cast as weak and unwilling to stand up to Louisiana politicians, whose level he had sunk to. To bottom it all out, a recall petition was filed against him last week.
Politicians who get into this kind of pickle usually did something wrong and at least got something out of it, whether sex or money. Jindal didn't do a thing and got nothing out of it but grief.
Bullshit. Don't cast Jindal as some innocent bystander. Jindal was in on it from the beginning, and made promises to key legislators that he wouldn't veto pay raise legislation if they would vote for his voucher program.
Beyond the vouchers, it's quite likely that Jindal traded many other things, too. Look closely at this quote from this article from the
News Star:
Northeastern Louisiana lawmakers, both those who voted for and against the legislative pay raise, said Gov. Bobby Jindal's veto on Monday was a breach of trust between the executive and legislative branches.
...
"He made a lot of promises to a lot of legislators, and anytime you tell someone something and don't stick to it right or wrong it's going to create a problem with trust," said Rep. Jim Fannin, D-Jonesboro, who voted against the raise.
===
"Let me be very clear: we opposed this pay raise from the very beginning."
--
Gov. Jindal===
Meanwhile, Gov. Jindal currently has less than 48 hours to veto the substantial pay raises for his own cabinet. As
WVUE's Allison Braxton reported yesterday on Fox 8 news:
In the governor's proposed budget he's seeking raises for at least three of his cabinet secretaries, with a nearly $75-thousand dollar increase for his economic development chief secretary Stephen Moret. That would bring his salary to 320 thousand dollars a year. Department of Health and Hospitals Secretary Alan Levine is expected to receive a 60-thousand dollar pay raise... to 180 thousand. Jindal's homeland security chief will get a 27-thousand dollar pay bump... to 165-thousand dollars a year.
...
State lawmakers say the governor has 48-hours to line item veto pay raises for his cabinet and they fear the raises will go into affect with very little opposition from the public.
So, here's where the rubber meets the road for all the "No Pay Raise" zealots. Here's the real test. If pay raises are such an outrage, will y'all pressure Governor Jindal to line item veto the enormous salary increases given to his Cabinet? Will you righteously ask why Jindal's cabinet deserves massive raises, right now, on top of their six figure salaries? Will you pressure Jindal about this issue with the same intensity that you pressured him about the pay raise bill? Or will you let it pass without rallies at the Capitol, and 24/7 internet frothing, and radio show ranting?
Where is your principled outrage now?
So this is your test, pay raise zealots. I predict you'll fail.
---
Update: Jeffrey posted similar thoughts around the same time. His is more delicious to read, I must admit, and chock full o' links.
Labels: Jindal, Legislature
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12 Comments:
If pay raises are such an outrage, will y'all pressure Governor Jindal to line item veto the enormous salary increases given to his Cabinet?
Funny I was just wondering the same thing.
The "No Pay Raise" zealots are no doubt saving their hissy fit should a pay raise be proposed for rank-and-file state employees...because being able to pay the bills AND save a little bit of money is asking WAY too much (and we shouldn't even be THINKING of, say, buying a flat screen tv or anything like that...)
Maginnis, I'm sorry to say, has become a shill for the Louisiana GOP. That's why he won't report the deals.
It's sad to see, especially since his book, The Last Hayride, was such a great read because he slammed everybody and their mama in that book.
We're pay raise zealots, now, are we?
We petitioned our government for a redress of grievance and now we're zealots!
You decide what you get outraged about. I'll decide what I get outraged about. No one can stay outraged forever. It's bad for your health.
On what level will you judge the "pay raise zealots"? Will you judge them on their total outrage shown? Or will you judge them on if Jindal uses his veto power on his executive pay raises or not?
If the "pay raise zealots" do not get angry about Jindal getting "his people" raises then they are hypocrites. However, if they do show anger but Jindal still fails to act, it will only go to prove Jindal's hypocrisy and his double standard. He will again say "the legislative branch cant do something, but the executive can".
May we now say that Jindal is not a man of principle? May we now say that he is your ordinary run-of-the-mill, back-room, wheeler-dealer Louisiana politician? Has the halo merely slipped, or has it fallen completely off St. Bobby?
With Clancy's "double standard/gold standard" along with the T-P actually printing letters to the editor speaking badly about Mr. Wunderkind... I think we may say what we wish now as some people are actually willing to listen.
"On what level will you judge the 'pay raise zealots'?"
By their words and actions, DZ.
In an effort to throw my two Lincoln's into the discussion here...
I had no problem with offering Moret more money, because I think he did a good job with the Baton Rouge Chamber, and the fact that he's taking a paycut to work there, from what I understand...
The last guy we "attracted" to that position was the head of economic development for a "five county metro" area of Mississippi...You get what you pay for out of those positions...
I disagree with Paul Pastroek's sorry arse getting a raise...and I have not heard whether or not there are any tie-ins to performance, but some of the details, and in light of comparing what his salary will be in relation to other folks in similiar positions across the South shows you that its a ridiculous amount.
But, I'd rather pay guys like Moret than pay someone like Duplessis, etc...
Call it what you want, and I know you will...I tend to think you're focusing on the wrong thing, here...
These folks-regardless of the letter behind their name-stood up and were accounted for. It was a momentous occassion, and they're to be commended for it...
But, you can't count on righteous indignation from the public anytime you as a blogger deem something cataclysmic and/or hypocritical...
The folks who stood up, you applauded, and now you're laughing at them again...They seem to be damned if they do, and damned if they don't, in your eyes...
Thanks for the comment, go.
As far as me counting on righteous indignation, it was quite the reverse. I expected utter silence on Jindal's Cabinet pay raises days after the Pay Raise Revolutionaries got their veto and proclaimed that "it's a new day" and "we will never forget" and "Baton Rouge will answer to the people, now".
If I'd heard a peep out of them this time, or if there were rallies, and talk radio outrage, and recall petitions... etc.... I'd have more respect for the whole thing. As I see it, it was an incredible distraction (though less obviously annoying).
If grassroots, democratic "victory" is defined as "at least Ann Duplessis not getting a pay raise".... then this state truly is doomed.
Go, since I see that you're from B.R., I'll ask what you know that I don't when you say:
I had no problem with offering Moret more money, because I think he did a good job with the Baton Rouge Chamber, and the fact that he's taking a paycut to work there, from what I understand..
If he's taking a pay cut, that certainly shows how much money the Baton Rouge Chamber has, and I suppose that could be because of Moret's leadership. And if you look at his bio on the governor's office web site, you'll see how much job growth there's been in the B.R. area since he became head of the Chamber in 2004. Even if you give credit for economic growth to the Chamber rather than city government, something happened to cause the B.R. economy to boom in 2005. Since you live up there, you might know something that I don't, but it seems to me that Moret's being proclaimed a miracle worker because the Baton rouge area benefited from Katrina (and Rita?)
Even giving him credit for getting business leaders in the nine parish area to work together, it sound to me like he showed basic competence more than an extraordinary talent that merits a six-figure income three times over. Not trying to be belligerent, but is there anything I should know to convince me that Moret wasn't just in the right place at the right time?
So they don't have to be successful, they just have to be just as outraged?
