Commentary––

Corruption In Perspective

By William A. Collins

It’s indeed,

A rotten tribe;

That to govern,

Needs a bribe.

So now we know that John Rowland played hooky the day the teacher discussed ethics. So did a host of other pols in Waterbury and Bridgeport. Not only did they miss the class, they seem immune to mankind’s normal pangs of conscience. You know, the kind that typically comes from accepting those gifts with which lobbyists strew the paths of government.

Will the governor remain in office in the face of these revelations? Who knows? That depends a lot on the normally glacial pace of federal investigations, and on the power of outside distractions. One more 9/11 and he’s probably home free. Presidential primaries may also push him off the main stage. Sometimes the press displays a strikingly short attention span.

But this time they’ve got the bit between their teeth. Several major newspapers, perhaps not models of ethics themselves, endorsed Mr Rowland a year ago over the clearly superior Bill Curry. Since everyone likes to back a winner, they just held their noses and did it. Now they’re embarrassed. Their own shallowness has been exposed, and they’re out to punish the guy they never should have trusted in the first place. He may not survive such an assault, even if he’s never convicted.

And remember, ponderous investigations and indictments have come up empty before. Inquisitions of Democratic mayors in both Waterbury and Danbury fizzled in recent decades. The guys may even have been innocent. But they were both finished politically, as is Mr Rowland. No federal appointment for him.

There are sometimes, of course, extenuating circumstances. The governor points with pride to his nine years in office and his many “achievements.” Indeed one of his defenders has proposed that since his admitted ethical missteps are minor, they ought not to thwart him from completing the rest of his public agenda.

This remark brought understandable smiles to Democrats and others who have impatiently waited nine years for some such discernable agenda. Aside from massive borrowing to improve the buildings at UConn, the Rowland legacy is proving to be a very short story. This is not Abe Lincoln or FDR we’re talking about. Redeeming social value is a bit skimpy here.

And the charges against him are substantial. We should never underestimate the impact of a free hot tub, air travel, credit cards, vacations, concert tickets, and the like. From Hammurabi on down, these little perks have tilted government contracts to favored donors. Citizens are ill served by such illegal arrangements, though luckily society overall usually survives. Only CRRA’s momentous $200 million loss in the shady Enron deal has made a serious dent in the budget.

Far worse, but less reported, is the impact of campaign contributions. Not only are they still legal, but journalists shamelessly fawn over those candidates who can amass them. Talk about corruption? These contributions make the award of construction contracts look trivial. They deal with regulation of utilities, auto gas mileage, prescription drugs, malpractice insurance, smoking, prison reform, taxation, subsidies –– the very stuff of government. And life.

But since personal lawbreaking is not generally involved, the media find little space or time to devote to the issue. While readers can readily understand the point of a free hot tub or buried gold — they make great images — industry deregulation and obscure tax breaks are quite another matter. Plus it’s a lot more work to connect them to specific contributions. Thus there’s no reason for glee even if the governor gets nailed. The heavy corruption will surely continue unabated.

 

(Columnist William A. Collins is a former state representative and a former mayor of Norwalk.)