Joe Turnham: GOP hypocritical, not ethical in two-year college legislation

“Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck out of your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye. Hypocrite…” Matthew7:3-5

The quest for transparency, ethics, and good professional conduct should be the foremost priority of both parties and all public servants: not an attempt to remove certain persons from office.
Officials in either political party, who commit crime, steal or use their office for personal gain should have to give an accounting. Recent attempts to ‘partisanize’ ethics and corruption by Gov. Bob Riley and Republican Party Leadership; however, reek of hypocrisy.

Democrats who have stolen or violated the public trust get no safe harbor with me or the Alabama Democratic Party. All persons are entitled to justice, fairness; but must be held accountable.
The recent ‘double-dipping’ campaign by some Republican operatives serves not a noble goal of full ethics in government; but rather a hypocritical attempt to broad-brush many outstanding Democrats, all while deflecting attention away from incredibly serious questions of ethical malfeasance within their own party ranks.

No person should be paid for work they did not do. No person should be given a job for which they have no qualification, or solely for the reason that they are elected officials.
The Alabama Legislature by design is a part-time, citizen Legislature. Over the years, a myriad of citizens representing every profession has served: including teachers, coaches, principals, college professors, economic developers, and community college administrators. City officials, state troopers, health department inspectors have also served. These persons bring a wealth of professional skill to the debate and formation of good public policy.

This week, the House, in response to the public cry for more transparency, passed HB 787 by Democrat Marcel Black with bi-partisan support. The bill allows public employees to serve in the Legislature; but specifically: prohibits duel compensation on days served; mandates that unpaid leave time be taken during the days members serve and makes it a crime to trade your public office for personal gain.

After Riley vetoed legislation last year that would have subjected lobbyists of the executive branch to register and disclose; he targets Democratic educator-legislators. Most educator-legislators are career public servants who were educators many years prior to their election.

Voters knew full well if a person was a principal or student counselor during a campaign. Yet Republicans have no problem allowing legislators receiving no-bid state contracts to serve. They have no problem with revolving door lobbyists like the governor’s former chief of staff to immediately begin representing clients before his former boss without having to register.

One Republican constitutional officer simultaneously serves in office, while secretly being paid in a ‘full time’, non-profit position partially funded by taxpayers.

What about the immediate family members of a legislator or governor who work for a taxpayer funded institution or represent legal clients with business interests before state government?

Should ‘covert contractors’ be allowed to serve? If we summarily start prohibiting educators, attorneys, or small business owners with potential conflicts from elective office, we may deny ourselves the benefit of some of Alabama’s most talented servants.

Use HB 787 as a start. Train, fully disclose and demand accountability; then punish those who abuse the system. But don’t allow partisans to get by with selecting for you, those who will serve you in Montgomery. Voters are fully capable of removing the speck or the plank of an unethical official from office.

Joe Turnham is Chairman of the Alabama Democratic Party.