A few months ago I called out Governor Bill Ritter for his delayed hiring freeze tactic. Well, as the Denver Post reports this morning, that’s nothing compared to what’s happened since the alleged hiring “freeze” went into effect:
A Denver Post review of hundreds of applications for exemptions shows that in three months, Ritter’s office approved 326 new hires and promotions — out of 371 requests — that could cost the state more than $12 million.
Ritter’s rules say the freeze does not apply to health and safety positions, jobs caring for state wards or required by caseload demands, or positions that, unfilled, would disrupt an “essential state function” or present legal liabilities.
Among the health care providers and criminal investigators that were granted exemptions were less obvious matches for those criteria: two contract lobbyists, a scratch-off lottery ticket salesperson, seasonal potato inspectors and a bevy of administrative assistants.
Okay, cartoonists, get to work. Potato inspectors? Lobbyists? Lottery ticket salesperson? In these tight budgetary times for the state of Colorado, it seems Bill Ritter is incapable of providing any real leadership — outside of making excuses and raising fees on hardworking families.
Where are the tough decisions? I like the way Post reporter Jessica Fender put it: Bill Ritter’s hiring freeze “turned out to be more of a chill”. Or for a more blunt assessment from a watcher:
Bill Ritter’s management style is one that is completely divorced from reality.
Doesn’t anyone want to run for governor against this guy?
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