The Revolving Door: Outgoing Democrat Politician Edition

Ending the speculation about his next step, outgoing Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak announced that he will be running the educational non-profit Generation Next when he leaves office in January.

The three-term Democrat mayor will become the group’s executive director and will focus his efforts on reducing the achievement gap among minority students.  Good for him, I hope his efforts find great success.

In what has become an automatic perk for outgoing Democrat officials, Rybak will also be teaching a class at the University of Minnesota.

When political analysts consider the differences between Democrats and Republicans in Minnesota, this post-employment aspect is always overlooked.  There is a lot of focus on the money raised by candidates.  Occasionally, someone will shine a light on the role of the Democrats’ political machine—which includes political party units, labor unions, and non-profits such as the Alliance for a Better Minnesota (ABM)—dedicated to electing candidates to office.

On the Republican side of the ledger, we have nothing to match the ABM machine on elections, nor do we have anything like the network of academic institutions, non-profits, and union-backed organizations to help out after a politician or public official leaves office.

There is a strong Cincinnatian ethic within the Republican-American community.  After a stint in public office, you are expected—like the Roman statesman Cincinnatus returning to the plow—to fend for yourself.  If, after years in public life, you no longer have a job to return to, or you sold your business to comply with conflict-of-interest laws, or your industry evolved in your absence—well, that’s just part of the price a Republican pays for public service.

Democrats, on the other hand, have other options.  Former Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives, Margaret Anderson-Kelliher landed with the Minnesota High Tech Association, after her unsuccessful run for Governor in 2010.  According to the Association’s 2011 IRS Form 990 income tax return, Ms. Kelliher earned $165,428 from the group, considerably more than she would have earned as Minnesota’s governor.

Former Democrat Congressman Tim Penny left office in 1995 and ran an unsuccessful third-party campaign for Minnesota governor in 2002.  He now heads the McKnight Foundation-backed Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation, based in Owatonna.  According to its 2012 IRS Form 990 tax return, Mr. Penny’s reported compensation was $152,987, not as high as a current member of Congress’ pay, but it will allow for a comfortable living in a small, exurban city.

Even lesser lights can find lucrative second or third careers in non-profits.  Steve Morse was a Democrat state senator back in the 1990’s, leaving in 1999 to serve in the administration of third-party Governor Jesse Ventura.  He now heads the non-profit Minnesota Environmental Partnership.  According to its 2012 IRS Form 990 tax return, Mr. Morse was paid $111,159 by the group, along with receiving additional compensation worth $20,647.  It’s not Bill Gates money, but it is more than he could earn today in a subcabinet position in current Democrat Governor Mark Dayton’s administration.

Consider the fate of former Republican State Representative Tom Emmer.  After his unsuccessful run for governor in 2010, Mr. Emmer tried to accept a teaching post at St. Paul’s Hamline University, but the offer was withdrawn after protests from liberal faculty members.

This sick joke underlying this state of affairs is that non-profits and the academy rely heavily on public support, whether in the indirect form of tax-exempt status, or the more direct forms of state subsidies and taxpayer-funded grants and state contracts.  But when it comes to hiring at non-profits and academic institutions, the sign on the front door reads “No Republicans Need Apply.”

For Democrats who hold elected or appointed office, the fallback position is a six-figure post in a policy-related field—the ultimate safety net against electoral setbacks.  For Republicans, election disaster holds a much higher risk of penury if one is unable to “return to the plow.”  Often, for Republicans, leaving office means moving out-of-state (Tim Pawlenty, Mark Kennedy).

Democrats are able to keep a deep bench in reserve and involved with public policy while they await their next run for office or political appointment.  For Republicans, there is little beyond the odd radio job or work as a lobbyist or in public relations to keep a former politician engaged and employed.  Having a lack of post-public-service employment opportunities makes it more difficult to recruit qualified candidates and appointees on the front end.

When the political tides turn (and they will again) the next Republican governor will be scrambling to assemble a team of top talent, having had the previous generation of public servants scattered to the winds.

Republicans and conservatives need to do a better job of creating opportunities for talented and public policy-minded people between stints in government.