News Clips

“The governor of Florida does not have control over all Florida police departments or the FBI. And by proposing this integrity unit, it seems like that’s what he wants: personal, political goon squad,” said Sylvia Albert, director of voting and elections for Common Cause. “A police force under the authority of a political individual becomes a political army. That’s similar to, I don’t know, Russia?” Albert said. “In America, we have separation of powers. We have politicians, we have police, we have the judiciary. We have this in place to protect our democracy and to ensure that politicians do not use police as their personal army.”

“Sheriffs and campaign finance — that is, who is donating to sheriffs’ campaigns — are a virtual blind spot that has not been covered enough,” said Keshia Morris Desir, Common Cause’s census and mass incarceration project manager and one of the authors of the report. “The role of the sheriff is not often talked about, but they have a huge impact on our daily lives. Sheriffs should be listening to their constituents and not wealthy special interests.” Beth Rotman, director of money in politics and ethics at Common Cause and a coauthor of the report, pointed to the need to reform campaign finance by limiting contributions from donors associated with entities seeking or doing business with the sheriffs’ offices. Rotman highlighted Connecticut and New York City’s example as evidence that it can be done. Both have strong “good government” programs, including limits on such campaign contributions and small-donor democracy programs, which is a form of public financing that seeks to replace the role of big money in electoral politics.

“It’s very partisan in nature and really reflects the attempt to advance an agenda that was unsuccessful through typical, ethical democratic means,” said Khalif Ali, executive director of Common Cause Pennsylvania, a good-government organization. “It’s a process in place for a reason and to go around that erodes democracy.” “I would say that anytime that a branch of government circumvents the function of another branch of government, we have some real concerns about the constitutionality and legality of that move,” Ali said.

“New Yorkers expect that public servants are hired based on their unique qualifications and not because they are the mayor’s brother,” Common Cause New York’s Executive Director Susan Lerner said in an email. “It is unclear whether a waiver from the Conflict of Interest Board would be required for this appointment,” Lerner said. She added: “Even with a waiver, the appointment of the Mayor’s close relative does not inspire public confidence.”

Cigna seems to be caught in a moral miscue, Cheri Quickmire, executive director of the elections watchdog Common Cause in Connecticut, said. “They weren’t being truthful when they made that pledge,” Quickmire said Thursday. “They had no interest. They wanted to get some press and attention by making the declaration. But clearly if it resumes so quickly it wasn’t sincere.”

"You're asking your constituents to show up and testify, to take time out of their busy days, and they don't even know what they're testifying about," said Viki Harrison, director of state operations for Common Cause, a government accountability organization. "All that does is make the public think that politicians are not real people and are not looking out for our best interests."