74.7 F
Charlotte Amalie
Friday, March 29, 2024
HomeNewsArchivesMESSAGE FROM THE FEDS

MESSAGE FROM THE FEDS

Gov. Charles W. Turnbull spent the week meeting with key officials in Washington, D.C. We hear that many of those officials were extremely upset with the business-as-usual attitude of the new administration. This is the same administration that came into office promising sweeping change, and then back-pedaled on the one substantive cost-cutting measure it proposed.
The governor has again committed to making those changes, but, we suspect, only after the feds made it clear that they weren't going to do one thing to help us unless we start pedaling forward again.
Whatever the changes are to be, it is time for everyone to drop their own self-interest, bite the bullet and get on with it.
The days of easy money from the feds are over. They keep saying it. We genuinely hope everyone in the territory hears it.
With news coming from Washington about millions for capital projects and potential forgiveness of Federal Emergency Management Agency loans, we fear that no one will really get the message.
The message is that in today's world, the feds help those who help themselves. And they are unhappy about our efforts — or lack thereof — so far.
We hope the governor does not return in a blaze of glory, pretending to be the conquering hero. The reality is that, to date, there are no heroes, only leaders who are mandated to make some hard decisions.
We had hoped that Gov. Turnbull would make the initial hard decision to be a one-term governor so that he could make those other hard decisions without the burden of re-election looming ahead. It's bad enough that we have to put up with the habitual political posturing of 15 senators who have to be re-elected every two years without also having a governor with one eye on fiscal reality and the other on popularity polls.
We keep hearing this government is in fiscal crisis, but nobody wants to be the first to sacrifice anything for the good of us all. Maybe the first thing to be sacrificed is Turnbull's re- election. Or maybe, despite public outcry, people secretly understand what needs to be done and would actually re-elect someone who has made decisions that — in the long run — will benefit this territory and everyone who calls it home.
The former governor, after all, constantly made decisions that seemed to appeal to the populace — robbing Peter to pay payroll, hiring scores of political cronies, giving extra days off for Carnival — and look what happened to him.
The point is, there is no room for puffery and politicking. There is no room for oppressive self-interest. That is how we got to this point.
It is time to understand that if we are going to get out of the crushing financial crisis we have brought ourselves to, we all have to give a little — and give up a little.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Keeping our community informed is our top priority.
If you have a news tip to share, please call or text us at 340-228-8784.

Support local + independent journalism in the U.S. Virgin Islands

Unlike many news organizations, we haven't put up a paywall – we want to keep our journalism as accessible as we can. Our independent journalism costs time, money and hard work to keep you informed, but we do it because we believe that it matters. We know that informed communities are empowered ones. If you appreciate our reporting and want to help make our future more secure, please consider donating.