Gravy Train

Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector Paul Bettencourt announced Friday that he will resign the office he was re-elected to just a month ago to pursue a “private business venture.”

This breaks the old record set by County Judge Robert Eckels, who resigned last year just three months after being re-elected. At least they left office before cashing in, unlike Commissioner Steve Radack, who managed a $120,000/year consulting gig while sitting on the Commissioners Court.

No doubt Bettencourt felt that he was at the top of his game, and that he’d be selling at the top of the market. He may have interpreted the election results to show that it’s all downhill here for Republicans, and decided to cash in while the getting’s good.

But voters should hold Republican officeholders to account for melding public service with self interest. Again, they’ve turned an elected position into an appointed one. It will probably cost millions just to remove his Bettencourt’s name from all the signage and stationery.