The Liberal Larry and Windy William: Expediency over principle | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's Note: This article originally appeared in the Beaufort Observer.

    The liberal Larry Britt and Windy William Buonanno come to almost all the Beaufort County Commissioner meetings these days, and sit on the back row with somber scowling faces. Crab apples dry up in their presence. Their main purpose is to attack conservative Republicans. That's their defense of their buddy, Al Klemm. Liberal Larry and Windy William are well qualified to criticize conservative Republicans. They are liberal Republicans, members of the liberal Republican Club and buddies with the most exalted RINO (Republican In Name Only) in Beaufort County, Al Klemm.

    We had a representative of a local manufacturing company come before the Commissioners requesting that we give them back a late listing penalty on their property taxes of more than $5,400 dollars. Commissioners can make adjustments to tax bills for justifiable reasons, as provided for by law. As an example, at this meeting we refunded an individual three years of taxes for a mobile home. But, the home was double listed, he had paid twice for the same home. We can only go back three years and we cannot legally double bill for taxes. But the manufacturing company was requesting that we refund a penalty for not listing taxes at all before the February deadline.

    Late listing carries a penalty of ten percent of the taxes due. I pointed out to the person who was representing the company that in fairness to all other tax payers we honored their request we should also refund all late listing fees for any other taxpayer. He did not want to accept my and other commissioners indicating the refund was not justifiable. He then indicated that because his company provided jobs in Beaufort County we should do him the favor and refund the money. I pointed out that his company had also paid taxes late in the past. And this company has been the recipient of taxpayer funded incentive grants.

    Allowing some taxpayers to list late without a penalty is not fair to those who list on time and will encourage others to list when they please or not at all.

    Liberal Larry and Windy William then went on the attack. But they did not tell the whole story.

    Who do you want representing you, Liberal Larry and Windy William or a commissioner who believes everyone should be treated the same? North Carolina law provides that refunds of tax monies without justification can be collected from the pockets of those commissioners who make the illegal refunds. So, giving tax refunds illegally dried up when that law was passed. This incident was filmed and is on cable TV for all to see. You be the judge.

    Now, let me tell you what's really going on here. The issue is not really about abating a late property tax listing. It has to do with a special interests seeking favors from the Board of Commissioners that are not given to ordinary people. But even beyond that principal that slipped past Larry and Bill, what's going on here is an intra-party political battle.

    Liberal Larry and Windy William are members of the liberal Republican In Name Only (RINO) wing of the local Republican Party. Their stock in trade is using tax payer money to give to their chosen few special interests.

    Liberal Larry and Windy Williams are members of the liberal Republican In Name Only (RINO) wing of the local Republican Party. Their stock in trade is using tax payer money to give to their chosen few special interests. They usually call it "economic development" but in this case they slipped up and got into tax policy. And that policy is pretty much dictated by law.

    Now in this particular case we had a company that had already failed to list its taxes before this particular time. The company also was the recipient of taxpayer funded economic development grants in prior years and apparently never delivered on the promises made to get those incentives. So they were back seeking special privilege, because they said "we provide a lot of jobs." RINO's like Liberal Larry love such deals.

    "Favors" is the magic word for Liberal RINO's like Larry and William. But they don't care about all the other hard working businesses in the county that list their taxes on time and pay their bills as the rest of us do. What Liberal Larry and Windy William want is to "deliver the bacon" to the special interests they think will then favor them. It's pure corruption. It's using taxpayer money to buy votes.

    But Larry and William decided to write a critical letter to the Liberal WDN. But they put a smoke screen on it by not explaining what the issue was.

    There is nothing wrong with one Republican criticizing another Republican. I do it when it is called for.

    But in this case it's obvious that Larry and William couldn't find a legitimate complaint so they seized on an illegitimate one.

    The issue is simple. Is the Board of Commissioners going to follow the law and apply it equally or is it going to give some special treatment that they are not willing to give others similarly situated?

    That Larry and William complain that I refused to violate the law and stood against special interests is telling. But I would suggest that all they do is expose their special brand of cronyism for all to see and then whine when some of us stand up for what is right.

    Fortunately, few likely read their letter. The WDN is one of the least read media outlets in the County these days. But that does not excuse Larry and William for taking a position that cronyism should be the method of deciding tax policy in Beaufort County. I don't mind their criticizing me or the conservative Republicans on the board. But I do mind, and will not sit quietly by, while they distort the issues and try to hide corruption.

    I would add that what I think we are seeing here with both Larry and William is precisely what is wrong with all too many liberal Republicans these days. The want to govern by expediency rather than on principle.

    The principle here was whether the law would be applied equally. That principle is obviously not important to Larry and William. I would suggest you watch them between now and the next election. You will see other such examples of Governance Via Expedience. Watch them on the jail issue. They'll take the expedient route on that issue also. They support Al in his trading his vote for the favor of the Democrats on the Board. And he is doing just that. What we don't know is what Al expects to get for selling out to the Democrats. And Larry most likely is simply trying to position himself to step into Al's shoes if Al chickens out about running again.

    Beaufort County does have an obligation to provide an adequate jail. But building a fancy new complex seven miles outside downtown Washington is not something the taxpayers should be asked to fund without giving them the chance to vote on it. Ask Larry and William whether they support the right of the people to make such important decisions as the issuance of more debt. The intent of the N. C. Constitution is clear. Only the people should make that decision. But Al, and presumably Larry and William would deny the people that right. Again, expediency over principle.

    But fortunately, the voters have already rejected Larry's brand of Special Interest Governance. He's a loser. When he ran last time he said "the most important issue facing Beaufort County is the jail." That was when we were facing the worst economic depression in our life time. (And yes, it was a depression for nearly three thousand families in Beaufort County when he made that statement.) Yet he would raise taxes on honest hardworking people to provide a big new law enforcement complex in a remote part of the county. Why? The answer: To gain favor with the Democrats on the board.

    Ask yourself, and them if you get a chance, why they would impose more of a financial hardship on the hardworking people and struggling businesses in Beaufort County, when we can make do with the newly renovated jail. Why would they do that? The answer is simple: They expect to get something out of trading their vote for whatever crumbs they think the Democrats will give them. Expediency. That's what it is all about for RINO's. Expediency over principle.