Just when we thought we knew Sen. Dave Schultheis, he throws us for a loop. The conservative fiscal hawk from Colorado Springs was the lone vote against a bill that actually freezes rural lawmakers’ per diem amounts.
Yes, you heard that right. Mr. Squeeze a Quarter ‘Til The Eagle Screams wants to spend more taxpayer money on rural lawmakers, who now get an extra $150 a day to cover costs such as travel and rent. That per diem was scheduled to increase to $191 starting July 1, but a Senate bill approved in committee last week delays the increase for two years, according to The Post’s Lynn Bartels.
Schultheis, who won’t seek re-election, said: “I know people who are running for the legislature . . . and I’m sure there are people here who are barely making it. It seems like it would make it more difficult for some of these people trying to run for office under what is now a fairly smaller salary.”
Schultheis is right. (Did we just say that?) Something needs to be done about legislative salaries (and the governor’s), but now is not the time.
You want more debate? Watch C-SPAN. Say what you will about the bills in the state legislature that propose revoking more than a dozen tax exemptions to increase state revenues. We support some and oppose some. But can opponents seriously argue that debate over them has been stifled? That was the gist of critics’ remarks in a Denver Post story last week. In reality, debate went on for hours and hours, and opponents got plenty of time to make their cases. However, stating your case and getting your way are two very different things. Perhaps that’s what is really at work.
Hypocritical or just realistic? The stimulus package received only three GOP votes in Congress. But that didn’t stop some Republicans from putting their hands out. More than a dozen GOP lawmakers who have criticized stimulus spending have submitted funding requests, or letters in support of requests, to government agencies. They must figure if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.
And a tip of our cap to … Rocky Mountain High School’s Garrett Karp, who hit a three-pointer in his team’s basketball game against Fort Collins this past week. It was his first game since undergoing treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma. The best news? He also learned last week his cancer was in remission.
Short Takes is compiled by Denver Post editorial writers and expresses the view of the newspaper’s editorial board.
