Scott Bremner

There’s really only one word that captures both the scope and breadth of recent revelations that County Executive Mark DiVecchio used a county worker to plow his driveway and may have had other personal chores handled on the taxpayer dime as well:

Dumb.

Does it bother me that a person of position feels entitled to the public cookie jar while the rest of us pay full freight?

Sure it does.

Do I want to know the full extent to which all of us pitched in to provide services to one family over the rest of us?

You bet.

But let’s start with a little perspective.

First, in the big picture, what we’ve heard so far ain’t the Great Train Robbery.

Further revelations could change this picture if a pattern emerges, but so far cries calling for DiVecchio’s resignation come across as overzealousness.

It also comes across as a bit feeble that DiVecchio dropped off a check when it was apparent that things were coming to light for the $9.83 that was the employee’s hourly wage.

If you know of a plowing service that will take care of your driveway for $9.83, please give me a call.

Also questionable are the motives of County Controller Sue Weber, who blew the whistle on DiVecchio by delivering a letter to his office.

Weber’s willingness to protect the public coffers is commendable.

The fact that she waited until right before closing time on Friday and delivered the letter with TV cameras in tow suggest that other motives might be in play, especially around whispers that Weber covets the office that DiVecchio currently holds.

But how the whistle was blown is a completely separate issue from whether it should have been blown at all, and on its face it appears that Weber’s action is justified, even if the means are a touch suspect.

But while I question both the goals of one elected official and the honesty of another, my overwhelming disappointment comes from the simple fact that the entire incident is just plain dumb.

As a Times-News editorial correctly points out, in 2008 this is a political mistake you learn to avoid in Politics 101.

In the old days the public simply accepted the fact that the spoils go to the political victor; that one street would be plowed more often than another based simply on who lived where.

The real watershed moment that changed that belief was probably Watergate in the ‘70’s; now both the media and the public are more watchful and less tolerant of political perks.

And in an era when everyone with a cell phone is armed with a camera, the chance of getting away with much drops exponentially.

Trying something like that today is, well, sorry if I’m repeating myself, dumb.

And word that the administration is looking to investigate the situation internally does little to foster public confidence.

As the region grows the County Executive position is becoming THE regional leadership job.

Someone in that seat has to be forward thinking, quick to be build coalitions and shrewd in riding the political winds to steer the area towards its best future.

In other words, shrewder than this.

The best tack now for Flagship DiVecchio is to come clean with all of it, make restitution, apologize and learn from the mistake.

We need more out of that office.

In fact, it’s a regional imperative.