The Scoop: Jim Gray hurt by bad economic times
I admire the congressional leaders we have representing this great nation in Washington, D.C. If nothing else, they have more nerve than I do.
Billion-dollar American corporations are taking a bath in red ink, filing one bankruptcy after another, and members of Congress decide they need another pay raise. For those keeping track at home, the latest $5,000 pay increase puts the average salary for a member of Congress at $155,000.
Oh, the joys of being a U.S. lawmaker and being able to set your salary at $155,000. That would really be a treat.
It would almost be as much fun as being U.S. President. Who else in this country — with the economy crumbling around him — could declare he’s preparing for a one-month vacation?
But that’s exactly what George W. Bush has done. He plans to leave the White House Aug. 6 and will not return until after Labor Day.
For those with short memories, this is similar to the stunt Bush pulled last year, I mean the vacation he took last year. The only difference is last year the Dow Jones wasn’t plummeting to the bottom of the ocean. Last year, people weren’t watching their retirement savings disappear faster than the chicken pot pie at Ryan’s.
Bush has maintained from the very start he’s a man who firmly believes in rest and relaxation. He doesn’t need to do any more to prove that point to me.
The next thing you know, Bush will try to implement the 45-15 school calendar at the White House. He’ll work for 45 days, then take 15 days off.
Now I don’t dare utter a critical word about President Bush without saying what I’m sure someone is just dying to point out to me in a letter. That point is the national economy has absolutely nothing to do with who is our president. Or at least that’s the way the theory goes.
For the record, I don’t think our economic troubles are Bush’s fault. For starters, he’s too busy going on vacation. And second, more than anything else, Bush is a victim of being in office during a dismal economic downturn.
The same could be said on the local level for Jim Gray, the former industrial recruiter for Warren County. I say former industrial recruiter because today will be Jim’s last day on the job. He recently tendered his resignation and it was accepted by Chamber of Commerce officials.
Of course by now most of us realize there’s another part to the story. Perhaps the worst-kept secret in McMinnville is the fact Jim did not resign voluntarily. It was one of those deals where he could have either resigned or been fired. When faced with those choices, neither sounds appetizing.
For the people who pushed Jim out, I can see why it may seen like he didn’t bring hundreds of jobs to Warren County. That’s because he didn’t bring hundreds of jobs. No industry located here during Jim’s two years as industrial recruiter. When that’s the primary function of your job, that can’ be viewed as a good thing.
At the same time, look around at the national economy. How many companies are currently growing? How many big industries have located in Tennessee over the last two years?
Is Jim Gray to blame, or are we simply experiencing the normal economic swing? Should we point fingers at President Bush or are we merely in the middle of a regular cycle?
One thing is for sure. The people who tossed Jim Gray out the door aren’t telling us why. That is not acceptable.
As taxpaying citizens of Warren County, we deserve to know the reasons Jim Gray was forced to resign. When dealing with taxpayer dollars and money contributed from both city and county coffers, there should be no closed-door decisions made without accountability.
(James Clark is editor of the Standard. He can be reached at 473-2191 or by e-mail at standard@blomand.net.)