Former Congresswoman Betsy Markey, now candidate for state treasurer, just loves to tout her “private sector experience.”  However, we have to take issue with this after reviewing Markey’s CV because she’s barely spent anytime there.  The bulk of career has actually been spent in government, and we get the feeling that she just can’t seem to find work elsewhere.  

According to Wikipedia, Markey entered politics right out of college working on the staff of U.S. Senator John A. Durkin (D-NH).  She later worked for a Congressional subcommittee.  Markey then spent most of the 1980s hopping between government jobs at the U.S. Treasury and State Department.

Later in life, Markey worked on the staff of for former Sen. Ken Salazar before announcing her run for Congress.  She won in 2008 and spent the next two years back in D.C.  After her defeat in 2010, Markey got what many believed was payoff for her vote in favor of Obamacare when she was appointed Assistant Secretary for Intergovernmental Affairs in the United States Department of Homeland Security.  She recently resigned that post to run for Treasurer. 

Yes, Markey did spend a couple years in the private sector but the bulk of her career has been spent earning her living from the government.  If she were truly sympathetic to the plight of small business owners, as she claims to be, then she never would have voted for Obamacare in the first place.  It’s totally disingenuous for Markey to pretend like she’s got her thumb on the pulse of the private sector, and we wish reporters would stop letting her get away with it. 

Some people genuinely feel the calling to serve in public office, while others are just unemployable outside of politics.  We get the feeling that Markey falls into the latter category.