Michael Graham tells it like it is concerning Gov. Patrick.
Here’s your economic quiz question of the day: What’s gone up more in the past year, the cost of gas, or the cost of the governor’s office?If you guessed Gov. Patrick - you’re right! Or at least you’ve been paying attention.
There’s something almost admirable about Cadillac Deval’s dogged determination to bring the good life to the governor’s office. First it was the $12,000 drapes, then the Cadillac DTS (Deval Transportation System) and then the tax-funded secretary for his wife (soon dismissed).
Now the Herald’s Casey Ross reports that Patrick has boosted his own office’s budget by a whopping 78 percent in the past year. (Gas is up 25 percent since last Memorial Day.)
It now costs Massachusetts taxpayers $9 million a year for the privilege of being governed by the Man Behind the Curtain. All $12,000 worth of it.
Where is the money going? Well, you can’t expect the Cadillac of Governors to operate with a Chevrolet pit crew. So he’s bumped the paid staff up above 70, including jobs like “director of grassroots governance,” a “grassroots governance liaison” (hey, you don’t expect the director to do the “liazing” himself, do ya?) and director of online strategy.
The governor’s spokesperson, Cyndi Roy defended these new jobs by insisting “the people of Massachusetts deserve to have their voices heard.”
As long as they’re not voting on income-tax rollbacks or same-sex marriage, that is.
SECOND UPDATE: More from the Globe, Holly Robichaud and New York Times.
