Quote of the day
We don’t generally do a segment like this on our blog, but this quote from Louisiana Democrat State Representative Charmaine L. Marchand struck me as particularly noteworthy. First some context from a NYT article about Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal and his new ethics reform package:
The new requirements will force all state legislators, as well as most other elected and appointed officials around the state, to disclose all sources of income, real estate holdings and debts over $10,000. (Judges are exempted.) Lawmakers and executive branch officials will no longer be able to get contracts for state-financed or disaster-related work. Lobbyists will also have to disclose their sources of income and will be limited to spending no more than $50 per elected official, per meal; splitting the tab, say among other lobbyists or legislators, will also be prohibited. (…)
The governor, ignoring cries of pain and going against the unswerving devotion to Louisiana’s food culture, pushed for the $50-a-meal cap, at any restaurant. No more unlimited spending.
In a town where legislators have been known to proclaim paid-for meals a principal draw to public service, this was an especially unpopular move. Last week, State Representative Charmaine L. Marchand of the Lower Ninth Ward in New Orleans said the limit would force her and her colleagues to dine at Taco Bell, and urged that it be pushed to $75 per person, to give them “wiggle room.”
No public groundswell took up her cause, and the $50 limit held.
Poor gal, only $50 per meal.
Here’s a link to to Marchand’s website that talks about her commitment to rebuilding her home district that was devastated by Hurricane Katrina. I wonder how many of her constituents could use a little “wiggle room” to make ends meet. This blog and this writer offer no sympathy to this oppressed legislator.
However, I do offer a hearty “atta boy” to Gov. Jindall and the reforms passed in Louisiana.