Comments on: Right Wing Group To Honor Only Lawmaker To Vote Against Tearing Down Permanant Wall Keeping Kids Off CHIP

By: Fiftycal

Fiftycal — Sun, 18 Mar 2007 23:53:01 +0000

Why worry about CHIP? If the hildabeast gets elected, we’ll have national rationed health care.

By: WhosPlayin?

WhosPlayin? — Sun, 18 Mar 2007 06:40:14 +0000

Funny thing: I’ll blog on this later, but I wanted to share with you that I spoke today with one of the leasing managers in the building where Parker’s predasessor Mary Denny kept her district office. I asked her if Tan Parker had taken over the modest office, and she told me that no, it was not enough square footage for this young freshman legislator. She told me that he wanted to move to “Parker Square” (an upscale retail and office complex down the road a way)

Now, when I was considering office space for my own business, I checked out Parker Square, and it’s a darn nice accomodation, but they wanted something like $1200 per month for a 200 square foot room with no windows on the 2nd floor. The equivalent sized first floor corner office in the Atrium, where Mary Denny’s office was goes for $600 per month, all utilities paid. (Note that Mary Denny’s office was larger than the office I looked at.)

So as to “Fiscal Responsibility?” I’d say Parker sounds like a hypocrite. I’ll investigate more fully and post something soon on http://www.whosplayin.com.

Vince and I have had this discussion before, but I’ll say it again. I think our Texas legislators need to be paid a good high wage commensurate with their responsibilities and the amount of trust we bestow on them. I think our current system of a “part-time” legislature is just outdated. If we pay higher wages, we’ll get better people who aren’t in it for the power, and don’t have to suppliment their incomes with jobs that may conflict with their legislative roles.

When legislators start taking an active role in hearing their consituents and working with people in their communities on things other than partisan fundraisers, I’ll be all for footing the bill for higher rent.

By: txinformer

txinformer — Sat, 17 Mar 2007 16:28:13 +0000

Sorry, but you’re barking up the wrong tree on this one. Rep. Parker’s opposition to this bill has to do with the change in enrollment period. In 2003, it was cut to 6 months from 12 months. Now they want to go back to 12 months. That’s ridiculous for a program that’s supposed to be “temporary help.” My wife works in the healthcare industry and she says she used to see a lot of people driving up in new cars with new clothes who still had their kids on CHIPS. It’s not that they didn’t need CHIPS in the beginning, it’s that they got a job and got back on their feet, yet still were getting help from the state because of the 12 month enrollment period.

Such problems were greatly reduced after the 2003 reforms. Why they want to undo that now is beyond me. I do know that I think Rep. Parker is right on the money about this situation. You are trying to mischaracterize it and for that you should be ashamed.