Public financing of elections needed

by J Scott Christianson, Columbia Daily Tribune Columnist

The November 2008 presidential election is still more than 1½ years away, but 17 candidates are already seeking the Democratic or Republican nomination.

Anyone who hasn’t declared his candidacy risks not being taken seriously despite the fact that every candidate seems obligated to declare he or she is “in it to win it,” which is probably another way to say “I’m not Dennis Kucinich.”