The Journal Sentinel has published an article (available here) indicating that Governor Doyle has been deficient in his required reporting in travel expenses nearly 150 times over the past several years, or about 75% of the time.  What should disturb Wisconsin citizens is not so much the failure to report (we’ve all lost a receipt once in awhile), but the amount of some of the expenditures we are expected to bear for the governor’s comfort.

For example, the governor’s airfare to Ireland for one trip in 2008 cost $5,226. That’s one expensive plane ticket!  It could be someone’s (or several someones’, depending on income level) tax bill for the state for the entire year. State travel policy requires officials to purchase reasonable tickets, i.e. coach. Doyle’s attorneys have justified the expense by saying Doyle needed his rest and the state could not afford to have the governor get sick. I for one was not aware that flying coach posed such a danger to my health.

This problem is symptomatic of the larger spending spree state (as well as federal) government is conducting these days, and hopefully the out-of-control hemmhoraging of our tax dollars will move voters to the polls to elect new leaders who will bring a sense of fiscal responsibility back to Wisconsin.