From 1530 through 1917 there were seven notable Russians Czars. Some were benevolent and some, like Ivan, were malevolent. Some lived to a ripe old age while others were assassinated; Nicholas II and his entire family were wiped out by the Red Army.

Now, the United States Government has its share of czars – 21 of them. To name a few: Drug Czar, TAPR Czar, Energy Czar, Border Czar, Regulatory Czar, Green Czar, Stimulus Czar, and Stimulus Czar. They are appointed by and report directly to the President. They do not have to report to Congress and they supercede parallel cabinet posts such as Energy, National Security, and Treasury. Their goal is to find a quick fix to problems within the different sections of government’s purview. Are they successful? That has yet to be established. But, it can be agued that there are two different heads running the same ship, something that brings more confusion and chaos to government in general.

The term ‘czar’ was actually coined by the news media and has been adapted as such by government, and it is not something new. President Reagan and Bush, Sr. each had two. Clinton had seven, and Bush, Jr. had twelve. Within less than six months Obama has appointed twenty-one and the number is destined to grow.

Aside from the growing of government, there is the cost factor. Each czar is paid an average salary of $165,000 a year for a current total of $3,465,000. By itself, that might appear to be a mere pittance. But, we now must add on other costs. Each czar has a staff comprising of twenty-five to thirty five members, each having responsibility only to their particular czar. The combined total of staff average salaries comes to approximately $50,000,000 a year. Add to this the cost of running all of the current czar’s posts beyond salaries, to include infrastructure, travel, and other general expenses and we are looking at a minimal of another $50,000,000. Overall, it is costing the American over $100,000,000 to have the czars that we now have. But, what is a hundred million dollars compared to a three or four trillion dollars that it costing Americans to run America? Again, a mere pittance. Heck! You can win that much by playing Powerball or the New York Lottery – but, then again, at the current rate, the federal government will take 39% of it (state and local government will take extra).

Ah! Government! The people wanted change in 2008, and they got it. They never asked beforehand what kind of change they wanted. Maybe we should create a new czar post to tell us this.

Alexander J. Wisniewski, Jr.