Sacramento plumbers union using term limits to its advantage

In the film "The Untouchables," Kevin Costner's Eliot Ness bemoans the corrupt nature of Chicago Police officers as he builds his force. Sean Connery's character finds away around the graft--by recruiting from the police academy, before the cops are ruined by the system.

California has term limits for most of its political offices. One of the arguments for term limits is that it theoretically prevents politicians from being tools of special interests.

The Sacramento Bee reports that Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 447 has found a way around term limit constraints. It has contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to local races, but not just to mayors members of the state assembly--but to "farm club" posts such as county supervisors and members of school boards. Because the union knows tomorrow's assemblymen are probably serving on a school board right now.

The Untouchable is now touchable.

Oh, the union still hands out cash to big time pols, but Local 447 has contributed $130,000 to school board candidates since 2007 and $192,950 to city council and county supervisor candidates.

What's in it for the Plumbers Union? Even essentially-bankrupt California still spends money on public works projects--and they want to make sure that union label is there when the cash, I mean water, flows in.

So much needs to be done...

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