Welfare for Politicians

By TU Editorial Board

Are state taxpayers footing the bill for lawmakers’ campaign staffs? Sure looks like it.

For years, many New York lawmakers have rejected idea of public financing of political campaigns, even though it could reduce the corrupting influence of campaign donations. Taxpayers, they argue, should not have to foot the bill for politicians to run for office.

And yet, that’s exactly what taxpayers are doing — thanks to some of those very same lawmakers.

For a hint of how this political welfare works, consider this statistic: One out of four staffers in the state Senate is a notary public.

There may be some innocent reasons for this, but there is one noteworthy political benefit: By law, notary publics can gather signatures for nominating petitions without having to belong to a particular political party. That’s a big deal in New York, where even a small third party ballot line can help in a close race.

The challenge for politicians is getting those signatures. Small parties usually have few field workers. So all those notaries public in the Legislature — at least 360 — come in handy. 

Click here for the full article. 

Source: timesunion.com (via The Empire Report)