. . . However, the New York City Comptroller has access to this critical information. Hence the freakout at the prospect that Spitzer might get the job.
Hence also the $1.5 million ad campaign against Spitzer brought by a coalition of business leaders, labor unions and women's groups.
The Issues that Matter to Women
On July 10th, the head of the local chapter of a national women's advocacy group asked a small gathering outside City Hall:
Do we want an elected official who has broken the law and who has participated in sustaining an industry that we all know has a long history of exploiting women and girls?
Sexual exploitation is an issue that matters to women, but the best way to save women from the sort of desperation that leads to exploitation is to keep them out of ruinous debt. Wall Street fraud, corruption and abuse have caused millions of homeowners to lose their homes and have tipped cities toward bankruptcy; and Spitzer is one of the brave few who has exposed and attempted to prosecute those predatory practices. As comptroller, he could make more information available to the public concerning the companies in which public pension funds are invested, look out for exploitive fees, and insist on plain English reporting of derivatives exposure. He can monitor contracts and business dealings and help protect the city from the kinds of rip-off schemes that deplete city funds for education, infrastructure, and the social safety nets that women, particularly, rely on.
In a December 2011 article in Slate titled "We Own Wall Street," Spitzer argued that bad corporate behavior could be stopped by a political movement uniting shareholders, pension funds and mutual funds -- the actual owners of the corporations -- who could then take coordinated action demanding transparency and accountability.
This is the sort of creative thinking that will be needed if we the people are to take back our power from Wall Street and the corporatocracy. We need a mass movement, coordinated action, and leaders who can organize it. Eliot Spitzer is one of the few people in a position to play that role who have the experience, vision and courage to carry it through.
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