Dec 28 2009
2009 Jackass of the Year: #4
Mike Easley
Mike Easley
I could make this incredibly easy and just recycle Easley’s Jackass entry from last year. You see, Former Gov. Clownass now has the distinction of being the only person to make the Jackass list both in 2008 and 2009- both times coming in at #4. That right there is more than he ever accomplished in eight unfortunate years as governor of N.C.
Last year’s entry did have one line of note that I’d like to bring up again. I mentioned that only the timely intervention of Rod Blagojevich saved Easley from the distinction of being the nation’s worst governor. Well, Mike must have taken that to heart, because in the year since, his antics have officially surpassed Blago’s and earned him the distinction of the nation’s worst recent ex-governor! Congratulations, Mike!
I find it fascinating that for eight years, a lot of people thought that Easley was nothing more than a do-nothing slug; sort of a political version of Punxsutawney Phil. Phil comes out once a year to check his shadow, and Mike comes out once a year to see which way the wind is blowing before he signs a few bills. But it appears as if we underestimated Mike. His public veneer of a detached, lazy, incompetent idiot effectively covered what lay within- an active, devious, incompetent idiot. In retrospect, it seems like hardly a day went by that Easley wasn’t breaking some sort of law. No wonder he was too busy to attend to his day job!
And it though it only took eight years and dogged reporting from the Carolina Journal (piggybacked by the N&O after Easley left office) for the powers that be to finally notice that Easley was breaking more laws than he signed, it finally appears as if he’s going to pay for his public corruption: unreported campaign flights, a cushy do-nothing job for his wife, unlawful bundling of campaign funds, sweetheart land deals, and more. All this while N.C. had the highest taxes in the southeast, a decaying economy, crumbling roads, an incompetent parole system, and other troubles that are coming to light daily.
So for all this, Mike Easley (aka. Gov. Clownass) is named the 4th Biggest Jackass of 2009. And here’s hoping that in 2010, we’ll be able to retire this picture:
and replace it with this one:
Tomorrow, your choice for the 3rd Biggest Jackass of 2009.
