By Staff
To the editor:
For months I have been reading in your editorials that we need to change things in the political arena because education, etc. is suffering. Then in three consecutive issues you have written editorials endorsing veteran politicians who are significantly responsible for the present state of affairs in our great state. Lindsey, Siegelman and Baxley have had numerous chances to change things without success. Why should we believe that giving them one more shot would help?
Your editorial on Siegelman mentioned the scandals, but you chose not to enumerate those. One of the many scandals that I read in The Montgomery Advertiser mentioned Seigelman's ally, Sen. Roger Bedford, taking Pat Lindsey and his daughter to an air show in Paris via a $25,000 state grant obtained to improve rural airports. After that scandal broke it seems that Pat decided to pay the state back for the trip. Interesting!
You also gave Baxley credit for the Alabama Prepaid Affordable College Tuition program. George Wallace Jr. started this program in the 1980s probably before Lucy every entered politics on her own. And does it seem strange that she hired lawyers to "audit" businesses looking for unclaimed property instead of CPAs? The last I heard, lawyers do not do audits. Could this be some more of the good ole boy payback system?
You also mentioned in the Baxley article, "Until recently, many people considered lieutenant governor one of, if not the most, powerful elected positions in state government."
Actually, that "recently" was four years ago. It seems that the out-going lieutenant governor Siegelman wanted to retain that control so he had the rules changed so that when he was governor he would not leave that kind of power in Steve Windom's control.
Can we really afford any more of the old regime?
Earl Cooper
Brewton