Past Time to Clean Up Harrisburg

The Pittsburgh Tribune Review has a couple of stories on corruption in the Capitol.  One is a query about the $10 million in taxpayer grants directed to the Beaver Initiative for Growth (BIG) by Rep. Veon, who was indicted in the Bonusgate scandal, and Sen. LaValle.  Coincidentally, Veon and LaValle were the only two board members of BIG. 

The second story is a profile of the “ruthless master of power,” Vince Fumo, whose trial starts Monday. You will note that among the 139 counts against Fumo is that he also directed taxpayer grants to his own nonprofit organization, which he used for personal expenses.

Clearly, there is a need for some serious reform, yet the number of legislators signing on to the petition for a special session remain well short of what is needed, while the Hall of Shame is too long.