More Corruption Charges Shake up NY, NJ Politics

Public officials paraded through federal courtrooms on both sides of the Hudson Monda, to plead not guilty to corruption charges.

It's just the latest case brought by the U.S. Justice Department against the highest levels of government in New York and New Jersey.

Zephyr Teachout, a law professor at Fordham University, author of the book "Corruption in America" and former candidate for New York governor, said private campaign financing — and, by extension, the amount of time lawmakers spend fundraising — is to blame.

"That's the root issue of the corruption in our system," she said. "That's all legal. But once you're already engaged in basically selling your policies to big donors, it just doesn't seem like that far a leap to sell your policies more explicitly in an indictable, bribery-like way."

 Zephyr spoke with WNYC's Richard Hake in this interview about the corruption charges against New York Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos.