Campaign Visits Come at a Price

The Scranton Times-Tribune ^ | 3/24/2008 | David Singleton

[Namyak]

Now that’s an expensive pie.

When presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Clinton had pizza at Revello’s Cafe in Old Forge on March 10, it cost borough taxpayers almost $400 a bite.

Mrs. Clinton’s rival for the Democratic nomination, Sen. Barack Obama, spoke for less than 10 minutes during his appearance at the Society of Irish Women dinner on St. Patrick’s Day.

The cost to Scranton taxpayers? About $90 for each minute he was on the dais.

While the parade of presidential hopefuls through Northeastern Pennsylvania before the April 22 primary is expected to give the voting public an unprecedented firsthand look at the would-be occupants of the Oval Office, it’s something like the real estate market — a great view comes with a price.

Even a comparatively quick in-and-out with little spontaneous interaction with the public, like Mr. Obama’s roughly four-hour visit, can cost local taxpayers hundreds of dollars in police overtime.

Public safety officials say the expenses have to be weighed against the obligation to ensure the safety of both the candidates and the public, and against the benefit that inures to a community when a high-profile politician comes calling with the national press in tow.

Old Forge called in 10 additional police officers for six hours at a cost of $1,565 to help with security, crowd control and traffic when Mrs. Clinton visited two weeks ago, Chief Larry Semenza said.

During her stop at Revello’s, the former first lady took only four bites out of a slice of pizza, but mingled with supporters both inside and outside the popular Main Street restaurant.

“People are proud to have the candidates around. It really is a community event,” Chief Semenza said. “For what it cost us (for Mrs. Clinton’s visit), it was worth it to have the people interact with the candidate.”

When a presidential candidate comes to town, local police departments take their cue from the Secret Service, Scranton Police Chief David Elliott said.

In the city’s case, members of the candidate’s security detail will tell police what they require, and the city will commit the necessary resources, he said.

The city brought in 12 police officers on overtime at an approximate cost of $1,800 for Mrs. Clinton’s rally at Scranton High School on March 10, Chief Elliott said. Nine additional officers — some on overtime, some not — were assigned to Mr. Obama’s visit at a cost of about $900.

Sixty police officers were assigned to the city’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade on March 15, which cost the city about $5,500 in overtime. However, the number of officers covering the parade would have been the same even if Mrs. Clinton had not marched, Chief Elliott said.

The process is similar for the state police, who “pretty much operate at the will of the Secret Service” when a candidate visits, said Trooper Bill Satkowski, spokesman for Troop R at Dunmore.

“They come in and tell us what their needs are, whether that’s traffic control or putting our people at certain locations,” he said.

Troopers assigned to a candidate’s detail “are assigned to that detail — they are not going to have other responsibilities,” Trooper Satkowski said. And while the agency tries to avoid bringing personnel on overtime to assist with candidate visits, it doesn’t short its other duties.

“We evaluate what our needs are, too,” he said.

Taxpayers will not have to foot the bill for Mrs. Clinton’s use of the Scranton High gymnasium for her rally. The Scranton School District will bill Mrs. Clinton’s campaign its standard $250 gym fee, plus a $25-an-hour utility fee and overtime costs for the custodial staff.

“I don’t think it will be astronomical — maybe $500, maybe a little more, but less than $1,000,” district CEO Michael Sheridan said.

In Old Forge, Mrs. Clinton’s visit will not be the budget-buster it could have been, Chief Semenza said. Anticipating their police officers would be pulled into campaign-related duty during the presidential election year, borough officials set aside $4,500 in a “special events” account.

Cities like Scranton, which have relatively large police overtime budgets, are probably in a better position to absorb expenses associated with candidate visits than smaller communities, said Ray Hayes, public safety director.

But those costs, he said, are a fair trade-off for the national exposure the city and Northeastern Pennsylvania receive when a candidate like Mrs. Clinton or Mr. Obama comes calling.

“We have to step back and look at it as a much larger picture,” he said. “You can’t pay for that kind of notoriety and advertisement.”

[Namyak]

Two things. (1) David Singleton must not be native to this area, because everyone knows you order pizza in Old Forge by the tray, not by the pie, and (2) We're going to have to pay for another month of these visits and campaign stops? What have we done to deserve this honor?