MATTHEW GORDON: AS CITIZEN LEGISLATOR, SERVING THE PUBLIC INTEREST IS PARAMOUNT
(See June 20, 2004 Op-Ed piece by Matthew which appeared in the Sunday Times Herald)
Matthew Gordon believes that it is the solemn duty and responsibility of your State Representative to represent the interests of the people in his district. Matthew, as your representative, neighbor, and district resident would make every decision on the basis of how well it serves the public interest. Matthew sees the work of State Representatives as a civic responsibility taken on by dedicated members of the community, not as a career.
Reflecting the importance Matthew places on the public interest, his funding has come entirely (100%) from the public. In fact, most of Matthew's campaign contributions have come from individual citizens within Montgomery County, concerned about the quality of life in our community.
John Fichter
JOHN FICHTER: AS CAREER POLITICIAN, DOING THE BIDDING OF CORPORATE LOBBYISTS IS HIGHEST PRIORITY
However, politicians like John Fichter see the State Representative position as a career in itself. They know that, to protect their position in Harrisburg, they must build up a substantial financial "war chest" for their re-election campaigns. The easiest way to build up campaign funding is by doing the bidding of special corporate interests, who then reward the Representative with their PAC (Political Action Committee) money.
You can usually tell a lot about your representative's priorities by looking at who funds them. John Fichter, who sits on the Consumer Affairs Committee and the Insurance Committee, raises his money from the very same industries over which he has legislative power. Rather than representing the public and consumer interest, he has repeatedly acted in the interest of the special-interest Corporate PACs, and against the Public Interest. This has a direct impact on the costs that we see in our electric bills, our cable bills, our phone bills, and our health insurance options.
WE MUST BALANCE CORPORATE INTERESTS WITH THE PUBLIC INTEREST
Certainly, Matthew Gordon recognizes that corporate interests deserve the attention of legislators, as corporations provide valuable services, investment opportunities, and jobs which benefit the community. However, it must also be recognized that the corporate interest is, by definition, motivated foremost by the desire for increased profits. While the public interest and the corporate interest occasionally intersect, too often the corporate interest is in conflict with the public interest with respect to maintaining reasonable costs to consumers, keeping high-quality jobs in our area, and limiting development of our open spaces. Therefore, we must ensure that the community's interests are placed paramount. Replacing John Fichter with Matthew Gordon would be a significant step towards restoring the balance towards the public interest.
For more information, including pie charts on Fichter's funding sources, please visit the folowing pages:
