Winners and Losers

Every Friday afternoon, my school brings in a respected leader to speak to the students about their field of expertise.  This semester, we have had people from the hospital management, transportation consulting, and public housing industries, for example.  I marked today's lecture on my calendar because it was a person whose career and character I respect, David Thornburgh of the Pennsylvania Economy League (PEL).  I had the privilege of working closely with David during my ten years at The Enterprise Center, which he helped found sixteen years ago and of which he is the current board chair. 

 

An insight I gained from David's remarks was the importance of the political process in implementing policy initiatives.  PEL does some great analysis of policy issues and makes sound recommendations on what Philadelphia can do to improve itself.  I always leave a PEL report or event feeling like I understand an issue and can see how their recommendations would bring about positive change for our city. 

 

The tricky thing about policy changes is that they are implemented by politicians and through a political process.  And while an idea might make sense when you consider the big picture, it usually tends to have its winners and losers.  For example, you can make the case that changing the way property tax is calculated in this city will be an overall benefit for Philadelphia.  But that benefit is not evenly distributed to all interested parties.  There will be some winners and some losers. 

 

I understood half of this reality already.  After all, whenever you change something, you will have winners and losers.  To take the property tax example, there will be some people who will pay more and some who will pay less.  Clearly, the changes will be harder to accept by those who will pay more.  That's where the politicking and the compromising and the finagling comes in.

 

David described a second set of winners and losers: the politicians themselves, and related power people in the city.  After all, politics, like life, is all about mushy things like relationships and egos and saving face.  So even as you have to consider that a policy recommendation will be applauded by some people (who stand to gain from it) and booed by others (who stand to lose from it), you also have to consider how the power people will gain or lose from it.  Who gets the credit if it goes well?  Who gets the blame?  Who will be able to keep their people in line, and whose people will break ranks?  Who needs a win to get reelected?  Who can't stand to agree with someone else, and who will have to disagree with someone whose favor they're trying to curry? 

 

And on and on and on.  Politics is a tough business in this town.  You have to be smart about policy stuff (understanding the mechanics of things like property tax calculations and zoning issues and sewer and water infrastructure).  And you have to be savvy about how to play the game to get stuff done, stay in office, and please your constituencies.  It makes me appreciate even more the people who are able to stay in this business and maintain favorable reputations and get things done and stay positive.