Does The New York Times Believe The Presidency Has Been “Tainted”?
November 17, 2008
The New York Times ran an editorial last week under the headline, “Tainted Justice,” arguing that the $29.4 million raised by state Supreme Court candidates in 26 races poses “an escalating threat to the integrity and independence of the justice system.…” If the Times’ figures are accurate, that means each of the 52 candidates in those races accepted an average of $565,384 in total campaign donations.
I certainly agree that state judicial races have become too expensive and too political. But this is a problem that afflicts campaigns for nearly all prominent public offices, not just state Supreme Court seats.
As of October 15, President-elect Barack Obama had raised $640 million. When the final figures come in, it seems very likely that the Obama campaign will have raised and spent more than both the 2004 Bush and Kerry campaigns combined. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Mr. Obama took in 50% more from investment banking firm Goldman Sachs alone than the average state Supreme Court judicial candidate raised from all contributors. He also raised more from both JP Morgan Chase and Citigroup than the $565,384 raised by the average judicial candidate. Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase and Citigroup of course, will be among the prime beneficiaries of the $700 billion financial rescue package that recently passed Congress with Mr. Obama’s support.
If $565,000 is enough to “taint” a state judicial seat, what does $640,000,000 do to the presidency?