I can name that tune in... C-notes!

(Good ol' "Name that Tune"... I wonder what ever happened to that perky gal who hummed those catchy tunes? (Yes, I know what happened to Kathie Lee Gifford!) )

Seems our (arguably, at least in this case) morally tone-deaf Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives just doesn't get it. No wonder people think politicians are just about money and power... the cushy corporate jets, lavish family vacations paid for by lobbyists, $500 lunches, treated like royalty, and then this from the AP via the Houston Chronicle:

$700,000 donated to fix up Craddick apartment

"Businessmen, a lobbyist and a major corporate foundation have donated almost $700,000 in the past eight days to pay for the renovation of Texas House Speaker Tom Craddick's [nearly 2,000 square foot] apartment inside the Capitol, according to documents obtained today by The Associated Press."

I agree with this guy:

"Special interests shouldn't be lined up to give the Craddicks a personal gift of a new apartment," said Craig McDonald, director of Texans for Public Justice. "If it's in need of repair or if it's in need of renovation, then it should be paid for by the people of Texas.""

and this guy:

"But Alex Winslow, executive director of the consumer advocate group Texas Watch, said the way the project is being handled "creates a sense of impropriety.""

Not to mention the sheer extravagance of it all. ("The carpets in the apartment and the speaker's office also are being replaced with carpets made of 100 percent New Zealand wool at a cost of nearly $37,000.") I mean, it's a frickin' 2,000 square foot apartment and the "renovations" (which seem rather minor) cost $700,000!

Well, maybe it's old and run down right? Nope!

"The apartment was extensively renovated in the mid-1990s during a sweeping $187 million Capitol restoration project. And three years ago, the Craddicks spent at least $25,000 in private donations refurbishing the unit."

That's a lot of renovations for such a small place. What kind of parties and party-goers are they entertaining that it should need so many fixes?!?

I mean, I certainly appreciate the sentiment expressed here by Craddick's spokes(wo)man -- "the speaker and his wife don't think it would be appropriate to use public money for the renovation project" -- but it just doesn't pass the smell test.

And not even Kathie Lee could sweeten this deal any more... does this bother anybody else, or is it just me?