The Worst Governors in America

The folks over at Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility in Washington have released their annual list of the worst governors in America and it makes for fascinating reading.

There are 11 governors on the list, it includes nine republicans and two democrats, and every single region of the country is represented.

Gov. Haley Barbour (R-Miss.)
Gov. Donald Carcieri (R-R.I.)
Gov. Jim Gibbons (R-Nev.)
Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-La.)
Gov. David Paterson (D-N.Y.)
Gov. Sonny Perdue (R-Ga.)
Gov. Rick Perry (R-Texas)
Gov. Bill Richardson (D-N.M.)
Gov. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.)
Gov. Mark Sanford (R-S.C.)
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-Calif.)

Whether or not your governor is on the list, you’ll definitely want to take a few minutes to read this. The sheer audacity of some of these politicians is almost inspiring. I mean, they know their every move is being watched, scrutinized even, and yet they do stuff that, if true, basically represents a giant middle finger to their constituents. You are truly bold, gentlemen.

Here are a few of the highlights.

Gov. Mike Rounds of South Dakota used a government plane to shuttle himself and a half a dozen family members to his son’s high school basketball games. I like the way this guy thinks. My cousin Matthew manages an all-female roller derby squad and I’m sure our parent company, TheStreet.com, wouldn’t mind if I chartered a helicopter on the company's dime to attend those matches (are they called matches?).