When Gov. Mike Easley did his back-to-school shopping this year with son Michael Jr., he chose popular locations for consumers who look for deals on clothing and textbooks. And like many other North Carolina parents, he took advantage of the sales tax holiday that began Aug. 6.
The governor’s communications team cranked out press releases declaring the three-day tax break, and promoted the Easleys’ excursion. Television cameras caught each of the governor’s store visits, as well.
He set out from Raleigh at 10:50 a.m. and arrived in Concord — a driving distance of 122 miles–at 11:30 a.m. Easley and son continued their travels at 12:05 p.m, reaching New Hanover County by 12:50 p.m., scooping up supplies at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. One-hundred ninety-six miles of road lie between Concord and Wilmington.
“He can really fly, can’t he?” said Rep. Linda Johnson, a Kannapolis Republican. “He probably did fly.”
Yes, he did.
The flight in the state Commerce Department’s Cessna Citation jet — from Raleigh-Durham Airport, to Concord Airport, to Wilmington, and back to Raleigh — took about two hours of airplane usage and four hours and 15 minutes of real time. The whirlwind tour, to purchase about $45 worth of widely available supplies, cost taxpayers $1,100 for the use of the aircraft.
“He’s just using it for a [public relations] thing, and using taxpayer money to fly around,” said State Senate Minority Leader Jim Forrester, R-Gaston. “I don’t think it’s appropriate, but I don’t think we can do anything about it.”
According to the manager of the Education Express store at the Concord Mills factory outlets, Easley and his son spent about $25 for a bulletin board, some pens, and other school supplies. Because he shopped on the tax holiday, the governor saved about $1.75 on his purchase. And because they were on the ground in Concord for only 35 minutes, the Easleys likely didn’t have much time to shop at any other stores.
In Wilmington, according to UNC-W bookstore Manager Michael Clarke, Easley and Michael Jr. spent about $20 on notebooks, binders, and other items. Such a purchase would have netted the governor a sales tax savings of $1.40. Clarke said the Easleys spent about 45 minutes at the store and met with some elementary schoolchildren from the area. He saw a spot about the governor’s visit to his store on the news at 11 p.m. that night.
“We were satisfied with [Easley’s purchase], in light of the tax-free weekend,” Clarke said, adding that he gave the governor a UNC-W “Seahawks” hat to wear. “We were honored that he chose us to visit.”
The reason for visiting the university in Wilmington was not clear, as Michael Jr. is a sophomore political science major at UNC-Chapel Hill. Gov. Easley’s office did not respond to repeated phone and e-mail requests for information about the shopping trip. The governor, his son, two security personnel, and a press person traveled on the Raleigh-to-Concord-to-Wilmington legs of the trip. Only Michael Jr., a security guard, and the press person returned to Raleigh. Gov. Easley maintains a home in Southport, a short drive from Wilmington.
“I think anything we can do to save the taxpayers’ money, we should do,” Forrester said. “Instead of looking at [the sales tax], he should be looking at reducing the overall sales tax rate and corporate tax. But he has never put that on the top burner.”
A campaign officer for Republican gubernatorial candidate Patrick Ballantine criticized Easley’s trip. “Suddenly the governor has found it necessary to get out among the people after three years hiding in the governor’s mansion, because there’s an election coming up,” said Bob Rosser, campaign director for Ballantine. “For the amount of gas the governor used on this trip, we could have easily bought textbooks for 55 children.
“It’s inappropriate to use the state airplane for a trip that is blatantly political in nature.”
Paul Chesser is associate editor of Carolina Journal. Contact him at [email protected].