Garthwaite Spent 104 Days in Madison in 2009 with Little to Show for it

During his last campaign, I seem to remember that Phil Garthwaite liked to criticize Republicans in the Assembly for being a "Do Nothing" legislature.

Well the numbers are in on Garthwaite's first year as member of the Democrat Majority and they would appear to show Mr. Garthwaite as the pot who called the kettle black.

Number of Days Garthwaite spent in Madison - 104
Amount of Per Diem Garthwaite collected from the taxpayers - $9,152.00
Number of Days Garthwaite spent in legislative session - 25
Number of times Garthwaite's Committee on Rural Economic Development met - 1
Number of bills considered by Garthwaite's committee - 0
Number of Garthwaite bills signed into law - 0



There is something to be said for the Libertarian minded legislator who does not seek to pass legislation or to meet frequently in legislative session. As Thoreau, Jefferson, and Paine are all attributed to have said, "The Government is best which governs least." Were Garthwaite of this mindset I could forgive his inaction as a legislator. Garthwaite, however, is a self described progressive. His voting record, campaign materials, and public pronouncements all indicate that he believes that government action is the solution to our society's problems. This leaves one question for Mr. Garthwaite. If government is the source of solutions to our economic woes and other challenges, than why aren't you doing anything to prove it?