Republicans hate government. Too big and bloated, they say. Too many people on the public payroll. Too many seat-warmers, Governor McCrory says.

But something magical happens when they get their turn at the tax-paid trough.

To wit:

Former state Rep. Nathan Ramsey got a job in the Asheville office of the state Division of Workforce Solutions as a “liaison between the state and area employers.”

Former Raleigh mayor and Wake County commissioner Paul Coble got a state job as “legislative services officer” for the General Assembly.

This is not to pick on Coble or Ramsey. They aren’t the first to get patronage jobs. Remember the two 20-somethings who got DHHS jobs paying $80,000-plus? Or the rich, no-bid, sweetheart contracts handed out by DHHS?

Plenty more Republicans jumped at the chance to jump from the private sector to the government payroll.

You know who you are.