Hogan's broken promise: By taking a stipend, Medlin backs out on one pledge he could have kept

Since April 2010, Student Body President Hogan Medlin has broken his campaign commitment to not receive his stipend.

Last February, when Medlin was just one of several student body president hopefuls, he made a campaign promise that set him apart from the pack.

An audience member at the Daily Tar Heel Student Body President forum asked the candidates if they would accept the SBP stipend, if elected.

Medlin was one of two candidates to say no. (Nash Keune said he would spend his stipend on Narwhals.)

In Medlin’s words: “Serving as student body president doesn’t come with a price tag … We’re not doing it for the money.”

We are disappointed to learn that Medlin is not upholding his campaign promise. Medlin made a pledge to the student body, one that could easily have swayed voters in his favor, and on principle he should have stuck to it, or never said it.

Medlin gets $300 a month — a total of $3,600 for his service. Student government stipends come out of student fee money.

As he explained at the forum, “That’s $300 that some student organization who doesn’t have money can be applying for and it would not be something I would accept.”

The money might seem like a drop in the bucket, but that is $3,600 that is not available to student organizations. There are more than a few student groups for which that could make a difference.

Student body presidents have lofty and often impossible goals, but Hogan’s pledge to give his stipend back to the students was, ironically, one of the few promises we felt he could follow through on easily.

When asked about his decision, Hogan said his financial situation had changed since he made the commitment.

Medlin is a Morehead-Cain scholar, and thus receives a full merit scholarship, including a living stipend.

We aren’t saying Medlin is being disingenuous when he says he now needs the funds.

Frankly, it doesn’t matter.

In a season marked by ambitious plans, Medlin made a commitment that he could have fulfilled — but didn’t.

As we enter another election cycle, candidates ought to think before following his example.