Unfair to use a bankruptcy against someone running for office if you're running against them and filed yourself!

I don't think filing for bankruptcy disqualifies someone from running for political office. We all have ups and downs in our life. Many people who file for bankruptcy aren't filing because they were irresponsible with credit card purchases; they are filing because they lost their job due to no fault of their own (maybe the economy and layoffs), or due to a contentious divorce and child custody battle. I have yet to see a single bankruptcy client who is filing bankruptcy because they are an irresponsible spender (I have a theory that irresponsible spenders simply find someone else to mooch off of, so they don't need to file bankruptcy).

If everyone who ran for office was held to a really high fiscal standard, none of us would qualify. How many of us have been late paying bills, had penalties added on to late bills, or had family help us out paying our bills? Exactly! Maybe .00001% of the population. With everything going on in life, it is virtually impossible to be perfect. If we were, we'd be God.

I do think someone who has filed for bankruptcy who tends to be a big-spender in political office might be a little troublesome, however. Right now in Phoenix there is a close race for Phoenix City Council between two candidates who have both filed for bankruptcy in their past. Liberal Phoenix City Councilwoman Thelda Williams's supporters (who have ties to the current liberal Democrat Mayor Phil Gordon and his reckless spending as Mayor) have made it an issue against her opponent, conservative Eric Frederick. The supporters fail to mention her bankruptcy. Or the fact that Frederick paid his creditors back and only filed bankruptcy due to being in the mortgage business (half my clients come from the mortgage business, sadly enough).

Since Eric is a fiscal conservative who believes in reining in government spending and reducing taxes, I don't have any concerns about his bankruptcy. But Williams' situation is slightly different. She has flip-flopped on the food tax during the campaign. Some may wonder if her lack of fiscal responsibility at home is related to her lack of fiscal responsibility in government.

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