Editorial LiveJournalists don't like some lobbying
The Chronicle's Editorial LiveJournalists blast City Hall lobbyists today:
Mayor Bill White, who has made his disdain for City Hall lobbyists well-known during his two terms, doubts they will have much effect on the outcome. "It's the witnesses who are doctors treating cancer patients and people who have respiratory illnesses related to secondhand smoke who work in bars and the merchants who are concerned who have impact on council members in this debate," the mayor said.
Let's hope that's the case. The public, including the business and medical communities, has had abundant opportunity to address council on the pros and cons of the smoking ban. The presence of lobbyists who say whatever they are paid to say, regardless of the obvious public good, is not needed and does little to elevate the debate.
This view may put me in the minority, but downtown lobbyists who go in front of Council to speak in favor of a position don't bother me that much. Yes, they're paid spokesmen for a cause, but we know that, and they do put forth points of view that ought to be considered. For example, during the recent debate before Council's decision to curry favor with Yellow Cab by putting Texans Shuttle out of business, a paid lobbyist for those opposed to the move put forward some very good arguments why it was a bad decision. Presumably, that lobbyist also attended various committee meetings on that topic and made himself heard, along with other stakeholders in that issue. That's not a "bad thing" in my view, so long as it's transparent. Indeed, the "lobbyist" said quite a few things that I might have told Council, if I could ignore job and life commitments to go hang out at City Hall for public comment.
It's unfortunate that the Chronicle Editorial LiveJournalists chose to criticize transparent lobbying on the smoking issue, but chose completely to ignore the manner in which Yellow Cab company persuaded the city's aviation director and members of Council to put a competitor out of business a few weeks ago. Apparently, transparent "lobbying" is worse than non-transparent anti-competitive dealmaking to benefit City-Hall-favored companies, at least in the view of the Editorial LiveJournalists.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 10/15/06 09:01 AM | Print |
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