Jane Harman Should Pay for the Special Election She is Creating

Only 33 days into a two-year term, Jane Harman skipped out on her responsibilities to her constituents in the 36th district - but more importantly, she left all California taxpayers on the hook for the cost of a special election, which is never cheap.

Elected officials, like any worker, are free to take new jobs as they please but it's in poor taste to skip out so soon after making a commitment to the public.  Why go through the charade of running a campaign, making promises to voters, getting elected and then up and quit a few weeks later?  Ego?  Apathy?  Only Harman can answer that.

It's hard to look a gift horse in the mouth when a politician as out-of-touch as Jane Harman blesses the public with a resignation, but timing is everything in Washington and her decision couldn't come at a worse time for California.  Crushing deficits, furlough programs, slashed budgets, high unemployment and myriad other financial problems plague California, and now the expensive cost of a special election is added to the mix.  A few million dollars may not seem like much to Harman - who has consistently ranked as one of the wealthiest members of Congress with a fortune estimated around $300 million.  But to Californians struggling to keep their heads above water, being stuck with the tab is just the latest - and fortunately last - sleight the voters have received from a career politician.

After announcing she was quitting, Harman said she was "frustrated" with the paradigm in Washington.  That's understandable, but she made a commitment to the people last spring when she ran in her party's primary, when she was elected in November and when she was sworn in last month to serve as a member of the United States House of Representatives.  If she wants to leave, we're happy to hold the door open for her, but on the way out she should have the grace to pay for her last minute change of heart.

The grassroots campaign asking Harman to do the right thing is just getting rolling, so sign the petition, find us on Facebook and send to all your friends!