Greg Roach's Berkshires Blog
Sunday, October 25, 2009
  Odd Arrangement
Last Thursday my phone rang and I noticed the Caller ID said "Freedman DeRosa." I answered thinking it was a business call, but was surprised to hear a volunteer calling on behalf of the Barrett Campaign asking if they "could count on [my] vote on November 3rd?"

It struck me as not-quite-kosher that the city solicitor's firm's office was being used by the sitting mayor's re-election campaign. But then again, if the mayor was paying for the use of the office space to host a "calling party" it probably would pass the strictly legal smell test. (I've been reading waaaaay too many regulations on campaign finance since I decided to run for city council.)

But I see that the Topix cranks have gotten their teeth into this and, for what it's worth, they make some valid points about the appearance of impropriety.

So, what do you think?

Is it proper for the City Solicitor's private law firm to host a calling party for the incumbent mayor's re-election bid?

I don't think that I would have done it had I been in either the mayor's or the firm's position. The simple appearance of a conflict of interest alone would have led me to search for another set of phones.
 
Comments:
As a critic and sometime journalist, it does make it sort of pointless for me to pay for my own coffee or meal when talking with candidates to avoid the appearance of being bought.

Then a company that is retained by the city for the people's business uses its offices and phones for the incumbent's campaign? Seems to be rather unprincipled and contemptuous of what the pubic might think. These are lawyers? Remarkably unprofessional if you ask me.
 
I'm super-sensitive to these issues because of my work with drug companies and with the gov't.

There's a reality-check issue with local politics, especially in a small town. Long-term friendships and family relations make it hard to keep things idealistically pure. So while I agree that this smells weird, maybe it's worth giving them a pass.

The concepts of "transparency" and "conflict of interest" are evolving with the internet ... interesting times, indeed.
 
Post a Comment



<< Home
A blog of random thoughts and reactions emanating from the bank of a mountain stream in the farthest reaches of the bluest of blue states.

ARCHIVES
May 2006 / June 2006 / August 2006 / September 2006 / October 2006 / November 2006 / December 2006 / January 2007 / February 2007 / March 2007 / April 2007 / May 2007 / June 2007 / July 2007 / August 2007 / September 2007 / October 2007 / November 2007 / December 2007 / January 2008 / February 2008 / March 2008 / April 2008 / May 2008 / June 2008 / July 2008 / August 2008 / September 2008 / October 2008 / November 2008 / December 2008 / January 2009 / February 2009 / March 2009 / April 2009 / May 2009 / June 2009 / July 2009 / August 2009 / September 2009 / October 2009 / November 2009 / December 2009 / January 2010 / February 2010 / March 2010 / April 2010 / May 2010 / January 2011 / May 2011 / June 2011 / July 2011 / October 2011 /



CONTACT:
greg at gregoryroach dot com

"Livability, not just affordability." - Dick Alcombright




My ongoing campaign for North Adams City Council

iBerkshires' Online Event Calendar



Because a Chart is Worth 1000 Words


Source:
Congressional Budget Office data

Powered by Blogger