It's that time again - campaign finance reporting! Twice a
year, in January and July, our elected officials have to tell us who holds their
lease.
I know that I may
well be the only person on earth who thinks it's undignified, rude, and
disgraceful for public servants to be for sell to the highest bidder, but this
is my website and I'm gonna holler about it and if you don't like it you can
leave.
Once again, I'll
explain the ground rules. County Commissioners are the most corruptible
political office in Texas. They control how every dime of your county tax money
is spent. If the District Clerk, Glory Hopkins, wants to buy something, she has
to get Commissioners' approval first. Same deal with Constables and the
Sheriff.
Any money spent
by the county for "professional services" - lawyers, engineers, consultants - is
decided on a non-bid basis. In other words, Commissioners can give those highly
lucrative contracts to whoever they want without regard for price or
qualifications. Prepare yourself for some shocking news --- those contracts go
to firms and individuals who give Commissioners the most money for their
campaign warchests. It's legalized kickbacks, pure and simple.
These firms and
individuals pass along the cost of doing business to you, the taxpayer, in the
form of higher prices to the county. They figure-in their required political
"donations" in their overhead.
Campaign
warchests rarely have anything to do with actual political campaigns. The law
says that elected officials cannot spend the money in their campaign accounts to
enrich themselves. But, that's never enforced. At least not in my lifetime.
And I'm older than most planets.
Also, we have to
trust them that what they are reporting is true. I don't trust them none at
all. Nada. They lie. They break their promises. One of them even harasses
women and makes us pay for it. On the whole, they're a slimy bunch.
The money they
get in their campaign accounts is non-taxable. Politicians made that law.
Cute, huh?
In short, they're
stepping all over us and giggling about it.
As I explained in
a snarky stuff, I go buy these reports and put them on the electric magic
internet machine, open 24 hours a day. Commissioners could do that and in many
counties they do, but our commissioners have one-half ounce of shame left about
using you as a doormat. So, they only let you see them in county office during
regular business hours - you know, when you work.
I'll put these
online as I get them scanned.
