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 Vows days of ‘Roll over,
PEF’ are pastSpeaker praises spirit of PEF members to carry on in face of tragedy By DEBORAH A. MILES Paul Begala, keynote speaker at the 23rd annual PEF Convention, praised public employees as “people who are trying to make a difference for other people.” A political analyst and commentator on MSNBC, Begala was an advisor to President Bill Clinton. During his speech, he shared several humorous anecdotes about political life in Washington, but Begala also stressed the importance of loyalty and support for our elected officials, especially during these post-September-11 times. “I join you in mourning the 34 PEF members who lost their lives at the World Trade Center,” Begala said. “My heart goes out to you.” Begala told how he was on the highway and witnessed the explosion when the airliner struck the Pentagon, just after dropping off his 3-year-old son at a daycare center near the CIA building. “I was near the Pentagon when that plane crashed. I saw this enormous fireball that rose in the sky. I punched in 911 on the cell, but the system was jammed. It wasn’t working,” Begala recalled. He said the evacuation was orderly, almost as if it were a drill. He saw children being walked out of the Pentagon daycare center. “We all started thinking, it could be me, it could be my children. So, we come together,” Begala said. “I am proud to stand behind George Bush. This is something we know in our bones as Americans. “The efforts the president has made to find partners in an international coalition, militarily and diplomatically, have been exactly right. I have been very proud of how he has led us.” Begala stressed that the attack on America was done by a small group of fanatics who believe they are the sole possessors of truth. He said they think anyone who deviates from their definition of truth, is worthy of slaughter. “This is the same crowd who bombed the World Trade Center in 1993, our embassies, and a year ago this month, the USS Cole.” He said the Taliban hates the United States because Americans celebrate their differences, which makes them a more successful society. “We don’t just tolerate differences, we celebrate them. “I’m trying hard not to let the grief turn to hate,” Begala said. This is a new kind of war that puts public employees on the front lines, he said. “I fear that our country has lost more public employees to acts of terror in the last 10 years, than we have lost among active-duty military in combat. There were the 168 souls at the Murrah Building in Oklahoma City. So many of those at the Pentagon were civilians and career civil servants, the hundreds of fire fighters in New York, police officers and Port Authority officers. “The spirit of America is that we are all in this together. It is the spirit of this union. Your great city and this state have been drenched in human tears. But because of the spirit of PEF — the spirit that carries on for lost brothers and sisters, the spirit of America, the real spirit that you embody — we will be undimmed. And we will overcome.” The Communicator Home Page |
WTC, recovery dominate
state budget issues Concerns arising from the September 11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center are dominating state budget considerations. The state abruptly went from riding high on a $2.6 billion budget surplus, to a goal of cutting $3 billion in state spending and 5,000 state employees over the next 18 months. The state expects to lose $9 billion in revenue and New York City $3 billion over that time as a result of the chilled economic conditions. Gov. George Pataki has pledged to offer early retirement incentives, tighten the hiring freeze on filling vacancies and curb non-essential travel and equipment purchases as ways to cut spending without layoffs. “The governor’s office assured us they would use every tool in their tool box to prevent layoffs, and we appreciate that commitment,” said PEF President Roger Benson. “We’re going to work with them to move these extraordinary times forward. Everybody is going to have to step up to bat to make this work.” The federal government has approved $20 billion in recovery aid to the state and city and Pataki has asked for a total of $54 billion, including some to help close the state budget gap. — Sherry Halbrook |
