According to a just released study of integrity in state governments,
State Integrity Investigation, the Commonwealth of Virginia gets a
big fat F and ranks 47th in the nation. The study is a first-of-its-kind, data-driven assessment of transparency, accountability and anti-corruption mechanisms in all 50 states. No state got an A and only five states scored as high as a B.
Surprisingly New Jersey received the highest score, in part because political scandals in recent years have resulted in some of the toughest laws in the nation being passed. Other states in the top five are Connecticut, Washington, California, and Nebraska. Nineteen states got Cs and 18 received Ds. Eight states earned failing grades.
So while our elected officials tell us they are "citizen legislators" who represent our views and that processes in the General Assembly are transparent and open, the truth is a good bit murkier. The back room deals on legislation and
selection of judges, the influence of political money especially by big players like Dominion Resources,
gerrymandering, toothless ethics laws,
mismanagement of VRS, and lack of access to (what should be) public information give rise to the suspicion that Virginia government isn't really a "commonwealth" but is more of a government of, by, and for those in the power elite.
The fox is running the hen house.
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