BY RUSSELL TURNER
HARD NUMBERS AND HANDOUTS
In the arena of politics it is easy to be distracted by all of the rhetoric that comes out of the state capitol. Our voters have become so indoctrinated with the idea that there is a huge pile of money just setting up there for someone to fight for and bring a bunch of it back to his or her constituents. It is a sad fact that far too many of our people do not comprehend the idea of working for the common good. Working for the common good is not supposed to grant special favors to those who are your friends or buddies. I have held public office and I have seen firsthand the selfish trend that is growing throughout our country. Many people are willing to ignore corruption and just plain poor management of our government if things are going well for them. We need to remind ourselves that our elected officials are our employees who are charged with the lawful and efficient use of our tax dollars. In the just ended session of the Oklahoma State Legislature, one bill that was of interest to me was Senate Bill 907, which would have created a Joint Legislative Committee on Accountability, to undertake review of executive branch agencies -- and request performance audits.
Being from the business community I know the importance of looking at the bottom line from time to time. I have found that it is very easy to get into a habit of doing projects a certain way just because it had been done that way in the past. If business people had not made use of the newest innovations available we would still be using rotary dial telephones and snail mail instead of using cell phones and E-mail. I have been critical of lawmakers of the liberal persuasion; even though our Governor Marry Fallin is a member of the same political party as me, I still disagree with her decision to veto the bill. I have supported many actions of our governor but on this issue I have a difference of opinion. According to Governor Fallin she said the measure was unnecessary because a governor can request an audit and legislative leaders can ask for special audits. While it may be true that they can request an audit, many times politics get in the way of doing the right thing in all political parties.
Just five years ago then Governor Brad Henry vetoed a similar bill; many lawmakers at that time were disappointed as well. It seems that our governors are much like the fox in charge of the henhouse. Here in Oklahoma we have a very competent state auditor who could make an honest and fair assessment of state finances. From the lowest level of government to the highest we Americans need to be using common sense and hard numbers instead of walking around with our hands out.
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