The power and voice of the state shouldn’t be for sale — but billionaire Michael Bloomberg in 2017 launched a subsidy program to at least try to rent it through state attorneys general. As Ohio prepares for its March 17 primary, Mr. Bloomberg’s ethically foggy initiative should raise some questions about how deeply — if at all — he considers the ethics of using public power.
The program hires two-year lawyers through New York University School of Law to litigate Mr. Bloomberg’s preferred environmental policies. The next step is where the problem comes in: These lawyers work in the offices of state attorneys general, handling these cases. Public records indicate there are at least 14 such lawyers, working in nine states and the District of Columbia, funded by a $6 million grant from the former mayor of New York.
The problem is not the subject of the dispute but the private financing of the exercise of governmental power.
Taking this out of the context of our current jungle politics, imagine if the Koch brothers paid lawyers in a Republican attorney general’s office to litigate regulatory or market policy. That would annoy me too. Or pick a billionaire and a public policy you hate—that’s not a policy or a person, it’s checkbook justice.
Billionaires Already have the resources to litigate and contribute to private organizations that can do so — giving them a much bigger voice in court. Mr. Bloomberg wants to exploit a public, taxpayer-funded office to represent us, the people.
That would be prohibited by Ohio law, which says no one can pay a “public official” a salary for performing public duties. (For theorists, a “public official” is more than just a public official — Ohio law defines it as jurors, consultants, and candidates, among other things.)
Ohio law holds that public government cannot and should not be financed from private wealth. No one can serve two masters—and the master with the money usually wins.
Bloomberg’s arrangement also allows the hyper-rich to distort public policy. Each attorney general must decide what is essential enough to exploit the restricted resources of the office. When a billionaire can simply fund a few lawyers to file lawsuits on behalf of the state, prioritizing competing needs goes out the window.
The laws vary from state to state, and there’s no doubt the practice is legal in the states where it’s practiced. But just because something may be legal at a given time or place doesn’t mean it’s right or ethical. The strength of his gold shouldn’t allow Mr. Bloomberg to seize public office — no matter how good the cause he wants to fund may be.
It is certainly worth noting that Mr. Bloomberg is an extraordinarily generous man who has turned his wealth into a public good. In this political era, every fact, every isolated act or word is considered to be a determinative of a person’s morality and worth—and it should not be, and I do not suggest that he be judged by any one issue. But this ill-conceived program is one part of his record, and it should be part of Ohio’s consideration in the election.
Dave Yost is the attorney general of Ohio. He’s a Republican.
