Columnist: Rendell and lawmakers try to pull a fast one, but we aren't that stupid

From a terrific new column by John Baer in the Philadelphia Daily News about the contempt professional politicians like Ed Rendell have the taxpayers of Pennsylvania:

Too many of those long in power think the rest of us are stupid.

Take Gov. Rendell (please). His defense for pouring public money into new facilities honoring fellow longtime pols - the late Johnstown Rep. Jack Murtha and Ed's old boss/buddy Arlen Specter - is that the projects are terrific job-creators to make our economy hum.

He said this with a straight face.

The implication is that in the entirety of Pennsylvania, at a time the state is slashing services, there aren't two other multimillion-dollar job-creating projects that better benefit more citizens.

We're asked to believe that a Murtha public-policy center in Johnstown and a Specter library in Philadelphia were selected on merit in the highest interest of the people.

Is anyone that stupid?

Ed's other defense is the money's borrowed and doesn't come from the General Fund. The implication is it's free.

We're expected to believe that annual debt service and fees for borrowed money paid back out of the General Fund somehow doesn't count.

It does. Debt service and fees are among "mandated" costs Rendell often points to as reason for required cuts in, for an ironic example, public-library funding.

The Murtha/Specter projects surfaced in a capital-budget list released late on Friday of the July Fourth weekend (proving that some traditions endure), each authorized at $10 million. The administration notes that the Specter library is scaled back, so state share is reduced. This is like saying (since it's not their money) $10 million, $2 million, yeah, whatever.

There's no defense for these going-away gifts from a governor known for giving gifts - with other people's money.

Read the full column at the newspaper's website.