Re: Conflict of Interest

Re: Conflict of Interest
I read with interest Messrs.’ Freundlich and Shalit’s back-and-forth regarding a possible Pavia appointment. Although it feels like our entire political system has become one big conflict of interest with politicians engaging in pay-to-play, setting up their relatives as lobbyists, nominating their girlfriends for important legal jobs, taking private sector jobs the second they leave office, writing tell-all books, etc one of the most important concepts for a loyal opposition is allowing a winning politician – particularly those in executive roles – the chance to name their own team.
Federal, state and local bureaucracies are very entrenched and it has become increasingly difficult for executives at any level to implement their agenda. They must be allowed to name people they are comfortable with. Historically, most executive level politicians find out that one or two of their loyal and friendly appointees were a mistake. The more successful Presidents, governors and mayors have quickly shunted their pals off to the side and brought in more capable technocrats for damage control and policy implementation. Short of a glaring and obvious problem, Mayor Pavia’s appointments should be supported until they prove us otherwise. Executive level public servants should at least be given the full opportunity to succeed.