As regular readers of this blog and followers of the Center can attest, we are not fans of so-called “clean elections” programs like the so-called Fair Elections Now Act, which provide taxpayer funds to politicians to run for office. Our reasons are many and varied: they don’t keep “special interests” out of politics like proponents claim, they don’t change who gets elected to office, they don’t do anything to reduce “corruption” by politicians, they tend to further entrench incumbents — I could go on, but I think you get the point.
That said, I stumbled across this story regarding a novel approach on the “clean elections” issue, one likely to provide none of the benefits that “clean elections” always fail to provide, but this time without wasting taxpayer dollars. The Anne Arbor News (MI) reports:
Leaders in the City of Ann Arbor Democratic Party (http://www.aadems.org) are considering a proposal that would significantly change local campaign funding and help create more primary election contests.
Under the proposal, the local party’s political action committee would provide campaign financing to candidates in Democratic primaries…
At present, the party’s bylaws limit use of its PAC money to the general election. The proposal before the party’s executive committee would change that and allow the PAC to operate like a public-financing system…
Those proposing the privately-funded “clean elections” program cite the normal reasons — increase competition, level the playing field, eliminate lack of funding as a barrier, and other standard platitudes typically embraced by “clean elections” advocates. Such hopes are, as always, likely to be dashed.
But I must applaud the Ann Arbor Democratic Party for considering putting their own money behind this doomed idea, rather than trying to force this scheme onto the taxpayers. Now if only the backers of the Fair Elections Now Act could be similarly motivated to waste their own money rather than the taxpayers.
