Q the Eye/02.24.11

Dear LakeCountyEye,

The voters send me back to Washington every 2 years because I tell them what they want to hear -- I'm going to slash runaway government spending. But I've just been caught, with my pants down so to speak, on a Congressional junket. I think I've tarnished the brand -- what are my damage control options?

Down Under

Dear Junket King,

Your LakeCountyEye recalls the last Illinois limited-government Congressman who acquired a taste for expensive overseas junkets on the taxpayer's tab. His name was Phil Crane -- remember him?

Speaking of vacation-time, considering this soul-numbing Illinois winter, your LakeCountyEye would trade the eye-teeth to be somewhere else right about now. Perhaps somewhere down in the southern hemisphere where it is summertime; and in a developed nation that has all the amenities of home; and plenty of white-sand beaches; and where everyone speaks English.

One local Congressmen had the same idea. A fiscal-hawk watchdog Congressman who, according to the Rockford Register Star, said ...

he voted against "$1.4 trillion in unnecessary spending in the last Congress. ... There are probably 150 organizations that have different plans to bring down the size of government. The biggest thing is for people to expect less from the federal government."
Security tight as Kirk, Manzullo talk budget

And who in a press release said ...

"We can fund our priorities and begin to pay off our debt by cutting wasteful spending, and we can do it without increasing taxes that Americans can't afford. We have got to get our financial house in order."
Manzullo Votes to Cut Wasteful Spending, Balance the Budget, Reject Huge Tax Increases on American Families

It should come as no surprise that this Congressman, as reported by the Daily Herald, booked a wintertime junket to ... New Zealand. One mistake however: he booked his taxpayer-paid vacation ...

Area congressman in New Zealand when quake hit

... during a major earthquake. Nothing gets a voter wondering what their Congressman is doing in New Zealand, quite like wondering if their Congressman perished in New Zealand!

If you happen to get caught in the media spotlight during your all-expenses-paid junket, your LakeCountyEye advises roll up your sleeves, put on your hardhat, grab a shovel, and start digging. And if that isn't feasible, the B-Plan is to beat tracks out of town as fast as you can and issue a statement saying you are lucky to be alive and your thoughtsandprayers are with the victims:

Manzullo, Colleagues Safe in New Zealand Following Quake

They say sunshine is the best disinfectant. Sunshine is what they have plenty of in New Zealand.

If you are an elected official, or a previously elected official, or just a private citizen under indictment, send your political questions to Q the Eye c/o ... LakeCountyEye@gMail.com