Editorial comment
Royal carriage: The governor travels first class all the way, and we pay the bill.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Life as a lame duck can be pretty comfortable when you have a wheelchair fit for royalty — especially when you don’t have to pay for it. Just ask Mike Easley.
The North Carolina governor has only six months left in office. It looks as if he’ll go out in high style. But then, he’s had a penchant for the good life for a while.
The News & Observer of Raleigh reported this week on the expenses for Easley’s April business-recruiting trip to Italy. The governor and his wife spent nine days on the road, and traveled quite comfortably.
The couple flew first class, from New York to Rome, then from Florence to London, and London to Raleigh. Their tickets cost $19,500. Others in the state delegation flew coach, for a more modest ticket price, around $3,000.
Once in Italy, the royal couple had their fill of la dolce vita.
There were several $500 and $600 staff dinners, and one lunch for eight in Rome for more than $700. A three-night stay at a Venice hotel for the Easley's alone ran up a $2,249 bill.
All the bills haven’t been totaled yet, but it appears the junket cost at least $170,000. What did we get for it? Two news stories in Italian publications and, state officials said, as many as six promising leads for businesses that may locate or expand in North Carolina. Or maybe not. Ever the optimist, Commerce Secretary Jim Fain says, “The trip was a success.” It sure was for North Carolina’s First Tourists.
But then, this governor likes to travel in style. Earlier this month, the Carolina Journal, published by the conservative John Locke Foundation in Raleigh, detailed Easley’s many trips in state-owned aircraft, which include a twin-engine Sikorsky helicopter and a Cessna Citation jet.
In the past four years, state records show, the governor and his wife flew on state aircraft on 237 days. About half of those trips included stops in Brunswick County, where the Easleys own two homes (in Southport and on Bald Head Island).
Despite his obvious use of official aircraft as personal transportation, Easley hasn’t reimbursed the state a nickel.
Maybe the next governor will send him a bill. But then, he or she probably won’t want to mess up a royal tradition.