April 5, 2009

Pay for Performance

The House has passed their "Pay for Performance" bill which gives the Feds control over performance reviews and how much people get paid in companies receiving bailouts. I haven't read much analysis of it yet, but if this eventually passes, doesn't it make Washington DC the nation's HR department?

I mean, why not decide how much defense contractors should be paid, regardless of contracts? They're taking federal money, aren't they? And aren't the Democats against pay based on performance when it comes to teachers because there are so many factors involved that aren't under the teachers' control? How is that different for a CEO or any executive?

Should Washington decide how well road construction crews are performing if federal dollars are involved? Whether police are getting paid too much since they've taken so much federal money? Should the Feds set the price of corn since farmers take federal money in subsidies? And if the President and the Democrat Congress push through universal health care -- won't they also get to decide how much each doctor, each nurse, each orderly deserves to be paid based on the political whims of a few hundred two-bit politicians who made it to the golden ring in Washington?

And why shouldn't the president and the treasury secretary in Washington decide how much pay Gov. Mitch Daniels or State Rep Jeff Espich or any other Indiana State workers get paid since Indiana took TARP funds? Why shouldn't President Obama, or some Senate committee in Washington decide whether our governor is performing well enough or should be removed from office?

If Washington decides pay and performance for banks and CEO's who take federal money, then they can, given incentive and a dark night to vote, control nearly every service, void nearly every contract, and decide who are good performers and who are bad throughout the country... With one glaring exception: Washington itself is above all that and woe to anyone who holds their feet to the fire of accountability.

Take a step back and bow to your Senate Lords.

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