Candidates happy to limit campaign spending Elections, posted by Editor, Mountain View Voice Online, on Aug 10, 2012 at 11:10 pm
Six candidates for City Council this year have agreed to limit their campaign expenses, a Mountain View tradition for which candidates say they are quite grateful.
Read the full story here Web Link posted Friday, August 10, 2012, 1:41 PM
Posted by Jim Neal, a resident of the Old Mountain View neighborhood, on Aug 10, 2012 at 11:10 pm Jim Neal is a member (registered user) of Mountain View Online
For me, it was an easy decision to stay within the limit. I am by no means a rich person and I fully expect to fund the majority of my campaign myself as I am used to doing in every other area of my life. For many politicians, it is all too easy to spend the hard earned money of other people. Although I have been extremely poor at times, I been firmly entrenched in the middle class for the majority of my life and I understand the value of a dollar. I would bring that same fiscal discipline to City Council should I be so fortunate as to be elected.
I am very pleased that the barrier to entry to serving on the Council is so reasonable. It provides an opportunity for candidates to engage each other based on the size of their ideas and not their wallets.
Don't be fooled. The VEL only means the CANDIDATE is limited to expenditures. They can raise all they want and money can be spent on their behalf. Just read the article above about how Abe Koga was in the Unions' pocket two years ago.
Posted by Jim Neal, a resident of the Old Mountain View neighborhood, on Aug 11, 2012 at 5:49 pm
That is probably bad news for me financially since I don't have any special interests backing me. However, I am very happy that my support comes from Mountain View residents since they will be the ones I hope to be working for.