Legislature must get serious on budget, restructuring

Years ago I lived in downtown Chicago during the old, corrupt municipal scandal days. My alderman was named “Paddy” Bauler and owned a saloon in a nearby rundown neighborhood. Someone ran for office as a “reformer” and was defeated. Paddy Bauler did a little jig for the newspaper photographer and uttered these immortal words: “Chicago ain’t ready for reform.” People chuckled about that.

Well, it seems our legislative branch in Columbia has a full cadre of Paddy Baulers. They’ve just told us in no uncertain terms that state government “ain’t ready” for modern streamlining and accountability. Too many of them think our governor is a Don Quixote, tilting at windmills.

In 1947, President Truman brought ex-President Herbert Hoover out of retirement to head up a thorough study of the federal government to eliminate waste and duplication. The Hoover Commission conducted a painstakingly detailed review and came up with a mass of good recommendations. And in 1953 Hoover headed a commission to minimize waste. Hoover’s presidency was regarded as a failed one, but he was the perfect choice if you wanted an efficiency expert.

Nothing much came from this, and our federal government sprawls around us, a behemoth. To pick just one example, there are more than 100 job-training entities, with no way to measure effectiveness or actual job placements.

South Carolinians have historically voted for and been indulgent with go-along, get-along politicians. Gov. Mark Sanford is rocking their boats, and our representation in Columbia is going to try to ride it out. I think we voters should take it upon ourselves to make some of them a little seasick. It’s like what happened to the old Hoover Commission’s reports; they believe they’ve made sure the governor’s detailed budget and Sen. Glenn McConnell’s proposed reorganization are dead on arrival.

I used to get all the Legislative Audit Council’s reports, and in almost every instance the examination of state agencies showed sloppy failure to accomplish missions, produce desired results and specific mandates. For fiscal reasons, the Audit Council’s mailing list has been eliminated.

The old, tolerant “wink of the eye” days should be long gone. State agencies with overlapping redundancies and little or no accountability to anyone, a government of individual fiefdoms, complete with lobbyists: Such a system is simply unsustainable and unaffordable, a government with no centrality of purpose. It’s like a football team when the quarterback’s signals are ignored. Competition from other states from a tax and service standpoint is relentless: Southern charm won’t cut it anymore.

Our General Assembly should retrace its steps and get serious. Judging by some of their quotes, legislators think the proposed budget and reorganization are somehow humorous. Cutting budgets across the board is mindless, doing real harm, and only makes sense because our legislators seem unwilling to do what has already been done for them. Winston Churchill said it isn’t enough to do your best; you have to do what circumstances require.

Now, while people all around me are squawking about property taxes and other increases, is the ideal time for voters to let legislators know we’re dead-on serious and, if that legislator isn’t, we want somebody who is.

Mr. Cunningham has been president of five corporations. He is now retired and living in Orangeburg.