When the Wayne County League of Women Voters surveyed local judges to determine if big campaign donations affect judicial independence, more than two-thirds of the robed ones said the cash held no sway. However, when attorneys appearing before those judges were asked that same question, more than 80 percent of those surveyed said large donations certainly compromise judicial independence.
No one asked News Hits, but we’ll give our opinion anyway: Most of the people throwing wads of cash into judicial campaigns aren’t doing so out of the goodness of their hearts.
In case you think that an overly cynical viewpoint, consider who it is that provides a large portion of the contributions in most judicial races. That would be lawyers.
Which means that the same people tossing cash at judges also believe that those contributions have an influence.
Case closed.
Curt Guyette is Metro Times news editor. Contact him at 313-202-8004 or [email protected]
