Lawmakers working hard or hardly working?

The Mercury takes a shot on its editorial page today at the Pennsylvania Legislature, which has been in session for less than a week so far in January.

This is the most expensive state legislature in the country, but between an extended holiday vacation and a lengthy Martin Luther King Jr. vacation, the lawmakers haven't had much time to conduct the people's business in 2008.

Here's the editorial as part of the newspaper's weekly Roses and Thorns:

THORNS to the state House of Representatives for failing to stay at their jobs in Harrisburg and get things accomplished. The legislators have worked all of four days this month since returning from the lengthy holiday break. Last Thursday, they even cut out early because of some snowflakes on the ground. This week, they’re on another break. House members are quick to point out that they are “always” working -- meeting with constituents, touring their districts, attending meetings. But being busy is not the same as hard work. We suggest, as we have so many times in the past, that Pennsylvania would benefit from legislators who worked at legislating in Harrisburg instead of being seen and heard at home.