By Diana Furchtgott-Roth, RealClearMarkets.com

President Obama has attacked business groups for campaign spending, but as the 2010 election campaign comes to a close, the biggest contributor is the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, which has bragged about pouring $87 million into this congressional election.

At the University of Washington in Seattle on October 21 Mr. Obama declared, “Look, right now the same special interests who would profit from the other side’s agenda, they are fighting back hard….So to win this election, they are plowing tens of millions of dollars into front groups that are running misleading negative ads all across America.”

But AFSCME’s $87 million is greater than the contribution of any of the groups mentioned by the president, which include the Chamber of Commerce ($75 million) and American Crossroads ($65 million). Other unions, such as the Service Employees International Union and the National Education Association are also ratcheting up their spending.

AFSCME president Gerald McEntee is proud of his union’s track record. “We’re spending big. And we’re damn happy it’s big. And our members are damn happy it’s big-it’s their money,” he said in an article in The Wall Street Journal.

There’s nothing wrong with private individuals or organizations, including private unions, spending money on political campaigns as long as institutional sources are disclosed and individual contributors to the organizations are agreeable. Under the Supreme Court’s Beck decision, union members have a right to ask for a refund of the portion of their dues used for political purposes…

See the rest at RealClearMarkets.com.

No related posts.