Governor Slacker
In plugging my own column, I shamefully neglected to call attention to Brian Ervin's excellent piece on Gov. Brad Henry, and his pique at the Republicans and Democrats in the Legislature for coming up with a budget agreement -- a bill that passed the Senate unanimously -- while he was away on a spring break vacation in the sun. Ervin has a quote from Henry supporter Frosty Troy:
"Brad Henry is the single laziest governor we've ever had," said Frosty Troy, founding editor of the Oklahoma Observer, Pulitzer nominee and long-time fixture within the Capitol press corps.Troy, who's covered seven governors during his nearly 50 years of reporting on the state Capitol, said Henry's typical pattern during his five years in office is to keep a low profile during session, if he's present at all, and then show up at the end to take credit for many of the more popular pieces of legislation.
"He shows up late at the Capitol and keeps pretty much a social calendar," said Troy.
If for no other reason, you need to click through to Brian Ervin's article to see the wonderful caricature of Henry that adorns the story.
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There have been blogging rumors for years about the weak work ethics of Gov. Bad Brad Henry.
He shows up habitually late for meetings.
He takes every opportunity to game a side-vacation while on official business, so that the beleagured Oklahoma taxpayer has to keep footing his and the First Lady's travel bills. Plus, all his kiddo's get a free ride on the Oklahoma taxpayer gravy train.
He was originally elected with 41% of the vote, then ran for re-election against a long-time Washington insider Congressman Ernest Istook.
Istook had lived in D.C. for so long that he didn't have a clue about what issues were confronting Oklahomans and picking the citizenry's pockets: State Lottery, expanded Indian gambling, lyin' & cheatin' Indian tribes swindling the state tax commission on tobacco tax, runaway increases in the state budget.
Three powerful principal special interest groups elected Brad Henry:
1). The Militant teachers Union: OEA.
2). The greedy Oklahoma Trial Lawyers.
3). The Oklahoma Indian Tribes.
That's why we're stuck with such a major mediocrity as Goobernor.