by Eyck Freymann
"Our place, in terms of being considered one of or the most corrupt state in terms of politics, is pretty secure. It's almost like we've kind of relegated New Jersey to second place, and Louisiana's kind of like on injured reserve or something.
-- Former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar (R), quoted by the AP, on being the last elected governor in the state not to face criminal charges.
Political Wire's Quote of the Day today brings up a question I have for the conservatives and Tea Partiers who bemoan the evils of the Federal Government. For all their chanting "States' Rights! States' Rights!," do they really want to hand over all the power to their governors and state legislators?
Back in February, Gail Collins in the New York Times devoted a column to deciding whether Illinois or New York had a more corrupt political culture. The response was astounding. Readers from states all over the country, red and blue, wrote in to make the case for their own state as the most corrupt. Collins herself was shocked by the responses, published in her next piece, "There's Always California." It's hilarious and horrifying reading.
Yes, there is plenty of corruption in the federal government, but at least there is an army of investigative journalists who are somewhat interested in exposing graft and lies and scandals. There's a big national market for sensational national scandals. But on the state level there's not even any media oversight. And as Collins points out, "Picking the worst political culture is tricky since you always wonder if the states with the most politicians in handcuffs are the most corrupt or just the ones with the most efficient law enforcement system."
So here's my question for conservatives, especially conservatives in my home state of New York: who would you rather have running your government: Barack Obama and the deadlocked Congress, or David Paterson and the New York state senate?
Back in February, Gail Collins in the New York Times devoted a column to deciding whether Illinois or New York had a more corrupt political culture. The response was astounding. Readers from states all over the country, red and blue, wrote in to make the case for their own state as the most corrupt. Collins herself was shocked by the responses, published in her next piece, "There's Always California." It's hilarious and horrifying reading.
Yes, there is plenty of corruption in the federal government, but at least there is an army of investigative journalists who are somewhat interested in exposing graft and lies and scandals. There's a big national market for sensational national scandals. But on the state level there's not even any media oversight. And as Collins points out, "Picking the worst political culture is tricky since you always wonder if the states with the most politicians in handcuffs are the most corrupt or just the ones with the most efficient law enforcement system."
So here's my question for conservatives, especially conservatives in my home state of New York: who would you rather have running your government: Barack Obama and the deadlocked Congress, or David Paterson and the New York state senate?
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