Is it scandalous that lawmakers might sell the power of their office for personal gain? Sure. But focusing exclusively on them ignores the other half of the equation, which is just as scandalous—if not more so.
Go back and read Pfohl’s email. Not exactly a help-wanted ad, is it? That’s because the tobacco commission didn’t need any help. The object was creating a vacancy to be filled—not finding someone to fill a vacancy.
This sort of thing happens a lot. CNN reports that in 2010 David Wildstein, a political ally of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, was named director of interstate capital projects at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey—“a title that previously had not existed.” According to a former Port Authority employee, “agency officials were told in 2010 they had to find a place for Wildstein at the executive level and the directive was coming from Christie’s office,” the news agency reported. “Soon after, the position was created specifically for Wildstein.”
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