 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| NEWS RELEASES | |||||||||||||||
|
|
STATE IN DIRE NEED OF REFORM, NOT EMPTY PROMISES FROM GOVERNOR With a governor who goes back on his campaign pledge to not take money from special interests in Sacramento and a top election official who is too busy breaking election law to enforce it, the need for campaign reform in California has never been more evident, according to political watchdog TheRestofus.org. "With millions of special-interest dollars lining his pockets, Governor Schwarzenegger has become the political handmaiden for the very groups whose influence he promised to end," said Ned Wigglesworth, analyst for TheRestofUs.org. "Then he's got the gall to tell Republican legislators that they shouldn't take any money from Indian tribes and then support tribe-backed Prop 70," he continued. "Not only do we get broken promises and hypocrisy from this guy, we get them on the very issue that helped him oust Grey Davis." Schwarzenegger has raised more than $20 million since November of last year, including some $15 million from big businesses with an interest in legislation that crossed the governor's desk. In the last year, pharmaceutical companies have given him more than $300,000; energy companies over $600,000; the auto industry more than $1 million; the financial services industry more than $5 million. All these industries benefited from the governor's pen, which vetoed legislation unfavorable to them and signing legislation which favored them; all these industries stand to benefit from Schwarzenegger's position on some ballot initiatives. Nor can Californians look to Secretary of State Kevin Shelley as their top elections official to provide much of an example. Shelley has recently faced charges of receiving laundered campaign contributions, illegally accepting contributions while in his government office, misusing federal funds intended for voter education and registration efforts, and using state employees for personal campaign purposes. These troubles may explain why he, unlike nearly all other California officials, hasn't posted his campaign finance reports for the October 5 deadline on the website run by his own office. "Both the Governor and Secretary of State are treating California as their own political fantasy playground," said Derek Cressman, director of TheRestofUs.org. "Schwarzenegger pretends that his right hand (the one with the signing pen) doesn't know what his left hand (the one taking millions of dollars from interests with business before the state) is doing. Shelley pretends that he didn't know who his biggest donors were or what the consultants he hired were doing," he continued. "It's time the politicians stopped making their own rules. We should instead pursue meaningful campaign reform." #-#-#
home > media
center > news releases > 10/6/04 |
|
