No. 64: Capitol Weekly’s Top 100

76. Michael Weinstein

Michael Weinstein once described himself to the New York Times as being akin to “gum on your shoe,” a reference to his relentless efforts to get voters to endorse the ballot initiatives he is famous for sponsoring through his organization, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation. His critics describe him in terms we can’t use here. AHF has run ballot measures in three of the last four election cycles, spending about $100 million in the process. We can only imagine what those efforts have forced opponents to spend. Two measures were seeking to lift restrictions on local rent-control policies, another would have required porn actors to wear condoms. A fourth would have capped costs on prescription drugs. All failed. But Weinstein is back again this year with another rent control ballot measure (Prop. 33), and has inspired another ballot measure (Prop. 34) that would require certain health care providers to spend 98 percent of their profits from federal prescription drug discounts on direct patient care. We’ll give you one guess which health organization that would apply to. Something tells us this won’t be over no matter what the voters say.

Updated August 7, 2024