Russell Moore: The People's Pledge Red Herring

Russell Moore: The People's Pledge Red Herring

Money isn't the only chapter of the story of the race for Governor in Rhode Island this year. But it's certainly the most important one.

Yes, money in politics, the unholiest of alliances, is flourishing here in Rhode Island, with this election shaping up to be the most expensive in the state's history. Yet shockingly, the local Chapter of Common Cause is celebrating the fact that "outside spending" was supposedly limited by a "people's pledge" in the Democratic Primary election for Governor. To somehow imply that this election cycle is a victory for lowering the influence of money in politics is laughable. When an election is effectively bought, does it matter if the money came from outside or inside? I think not.

$$$: Mother's Milk of politics

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Even people who don't follow politics know that money in politics go together like a hipster and a Starbucks latte. But this year, both nationally, and especially locally, the money spent on politics has exploded. Nationally, spending on politics will eclipse $4 billion, making it the most expensive political cycle in history, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

In Little Rhody, when all was said and done, the Democratic Primary for Governor cost just more than $10 million for the 3 major candidates combined. General Treasurer Gina Raimondo, who prevailed, significantly outspent her two opponents, with a staggering $5 million dollars in expenditures. The other two, Clay Pell and Angel Taveras, spent roughly that much combined.

Further, the spending on the Rhode Island Primary exceeded even that of Massachusetts, which has a population roughly six times the size of Rhode Island's. The Democratic Primary candidates in Rhode Island spent a whopping $10 million on the race while their counterparts in Massachusetts spent about $7 million. 

Campaign Finance Reform

Against that backdrop, it's clear that the Rhode Island, and the nation as a whole, needs campaign finance reform like blood. A stronger public financing system that puts people who aren't as well-connected and from less wealthy backgrounds is an idea that needs to be taken far more seriously.

That's because the trend of needing a massive trust fund with a well-known family name or well-heeled backers in order to get involved in politics is sickening.  It means idealistic, intelligent young men and women with passion and great ideas who see the corrupting influence that money has on politics are likely to turn their attention elsewhere instead of reaching for the brass ring.

So it's surprising to see Common Cause advocating for more so-called People's Pledges to the detriment of finding more effective ways to limit the influence of money in politics. Common Cause rightly points out that the People's Pledge itself does not intend to limit the amount of money in politics. Instead, the aim is increase transparency by making the groups who would donate money to help candidates directly.

Outside spending?

That's a fair point. Shadow organizations that don't have to reveal who is funding their organizations are the antithesis of sunlight. But let's not be Pollyanna here either. It's pretty easy for donors to bundle donations to their candidates of choice. Unfortunately, all spending is "outside spending" because money is fungible. If someone has the desire and will to spend money on something, they're going to make it happen.

For instance, if a person wants to donate to a certain candidate, but doesn't want his name to appear on a campaign report, it would be relatively easy to bundle donations to that candidate through family members. That person could even use his cousins with different last names in order to muddy the waters even further. Anyone who doesn't think that's not already taking place probably believes WWE Professional Wrestling is real.

That's why all the attention being paid to the fact that Vincent "Buddy" Cianci is taking campaign cash from city employees was both disingenuous and a distraction from the real issues in the Providence mayoral race.

Increase contribution limits??

That's why the People's Pledge was much ado about nothing. It was full of sound and fury, but signified nothing. It's also worth noting that the People's Pledge didn't cover direct mail. And Lord knows there was tons of direct mail spent in the Democratic Primary. Again, given the fungibility of money, it's likely that the outside money that would've been spent in other areas was merely directed towards mail. 
Don't get me wrong, increasing transparency in campaign finance is a worthy goal and should be taken seriously. Instead of people's pledges, perhaps a better way to achieve that transparency would be to increase individual contribution limits. In that instance, at least people would be able to more easily identify donors.

Apathy is major culprit

But as much as the People's Pledge is a red herring, money in politics is, when all is said and done, an even larger red fish. If the populace wasn't apathetic, it would be able to see through the nefarious effects of money in politics. If people do their own research with their own discerning eyes, they'll easily see advertisements meant to mislead.

Yet as long as people are far more fixated on professional sports more so than the government, they'll be easily misled by huge cash expenditures.

A native Rhode Islander, Russell J. Moore is a graduate of Providence College and St. Raphael Academy. He worked as a news reporter for 7 years (2004-2010), 5 of which with The Warwick Beacon, focusing on government. He continues to keep a close eye on the inner workings of Rhode Islands state and local governments. Find Russell J. Moore Twitter @russmoore713.