Several years ago I                                      made waves all over                                  Winfield when I ripped                             Circuit Judge O.C.                                     "Hobby" Spaulding for                               sentencing a man to                                      home confinement                                      who had threatened the life of a Putnam County Deputy Sheriff.

I would take the same stand again.

Now, I am standing with Spaulding for a stand he is taking on election ethics.

Across America we are hearing about campaign funds raised by politicians in their quest for congress, the Oval Office, or governorships.

We're talking DOZENS OF MILLIONS of dollars for the presidency, a job that pays less than a million.

We hear of political sellouts to big and small businesses, special interests, cronyism, nepotism, back-room deals, vote-swapping, and favoritism-and not just in Hurricane.

So when I read that Judge Spaulding was REFUSING to take campaign contributions, you could have knocked me over with a feather. And when I heard that Spaulding was paying for his 2008 campaign WITH HIS OWN MONEY, I was SURE I was being "punked."

It's no joke. Spaulding is personally paying for his campaign. Not as a political PR stunt, but because he believes it's the ethical thing to do.

Ethics in Putnam County politics? What a concept!

Spaulding's reasoning is crystal clear. He believes judges must be impartial. He believes that they must not "owe" anyone any "favors." And he believes that political donors expect something in return. So he's telling prospective contributors to "Keep your money."

It's refreshing. And it's ethical.

Now Spaulding IS NOT saying, nor am I, that all judicial candidates are sellouts. He isn't taking any shots at his challengers. And he freely admits that in his first campaign years ago, he did take contributions. More importantly, he felt uncomfortable afterwards knowing people "expected" him to decide favorably because they opened his wallet.

So, in 2008, Spaulding is opening his own wallet. He says that during his last term, he set aside hundreds of dollars a month for a campaign fund-money that he could have used for a vacation or a pension. Instead, he will use it to buy signs or advertisements, or fliers to hand out.

Sure, Spaulding makes very good money. He's a circuit judge. He ought to be well compensated. If he worked for a Charleston law firm he could easily triple his salary-or more. However, public servants, even judges, don't become millionaires. Still, he isn't asking for sympathy.

Recently, Spaulding was criticized for his stand by the out-of-state legal news publisher. It's a classic case of someone not getting the point.

What Spaulding is doing isn't a PR stunt. It isn't a grandstanding move. He never sent out a press release to PutnamLIVE.com bragging about his self-funded campaign. He's never asked PutnamLIVE.com for any favors. He knows better than that. So Spaulding doesn't even know about this column-until he reads it like the rest of you.

Whether you agree with Spaulding's judicial decisions or not, you must admire a man that is willing to "put his money where his mouth is" when so few understand the concept of honor.

What Spaulding is doing is taking a highly unusual stand for principles in politics. It's real simple: It's about ethics!