Open Mic With Eliot Spitzer, Candidate For New York City Comptroller

Impact
ByEliot Spitzer

If anyone appreciates taking their seemingly small piece of the pie and using it to make a big impact, it’s millennials. If anyone understands the power of a small force to make a big change, it’s this generation that’s coming of age in the era of social media. I know something about finding new and creative ways to change the status quo. As attorney general and as governor, I fought for change to benefit everyday New Yorkers. I fought for equity in school funding, fair wages, access to reproductive health services, and capital for minority and women-owned businesses. And I did so using tools that others ignored. The comptroller’s office can and should be a means for change. 

The comptroller plays an incredibly important role in protecting the financial future of the City and its residents, but this means more than just balancing the books. The office is easy to overlook, but its reach can be vast and, like social media, extend to any number of issues affecting the day-to-day lives of the City’s residents. NYCHA should use its resources to ensure residents live in safe and dignified housing, New York City schools should efficiently use every dollar they deserve, and the corporations in which we invest our pensioners’ money should be responsive to shareholder concerns. These are all areas where the comptroller’s office can affect change. Whether the issues are pension liabilities and budget deficits, or education and criminal justice, the comptroller’s office has a responsibility to ensure the City’s resources are used wisely and on behalf of all New Yorkers.

For millennials, the principles of transparency and democratization are second nature. We live in a time where dissemination of an idea, its support, and its actualization happen almost simultaneously and with a click of a button. Millennials are instituting changes and reforms by tapping into their social networks. Their activism and innovativeness shape the roles of and demand change from political representatives. And that’s the way it should be. An active citizenry demands active governance. And that’s why I’m running for comptroller – not to count the money, but to make the money count.

NYC comptroller candidate Eliot Spitzer is taking your questions and has agreed to respond to the top three most Mic’d questions/comments in the discussion section below.

For background on what’s at stake in the race and more information about Spitzer’s opponent Scott Stringer, read PolicyMic’s pocket guide to the NYC Comptroller Election 2013. Then, pose your question/comment to Spitzer below by Wednesday 8/7 at 12:00 p.m.

To help ensure a high-quality discussion, our editors will be moderating the discussion below.