Every Democrat in the 2016 field has complained about ridesharing services like Uber, Lyft, and Sidecar. But their campaigns pay for plenty of Uber rides.
Hillary Clinton’s primary complaint about ridesharing services deals with their wage models. Basically, because drivers work as contractors, they don’t receive the same benefits that full-time employees would. Nonetheless, according to FEC reports, the Clinton campaign has spent about $1,000 on Uber rides.
Bernie Sanders and Martin O’Malley have also tried to play up their pro-big labor bona fides, but both opt for Ubers over taxis. As Jason Pye notes, Sanders has criticized ridesharing services, while his campaign uses them.
However, Sanders’ campaign has paid for Ubers, but not taxis. O’Malley’s campaign has also paid for Ubers, but not taxis. His criticisms of Uber closely resemble Clinton’s.
