Oldest profession?
So, I’m supposed to be surprised that politicians are bought and paid for? Or just surprised they’re bought and paid for by Enron? The AP:
In only a few e-mails, Enron employees laid bare the reality of politics: the money trail from companies seeking favors from lawmakers with the power to grant them.
The e-mails circulated among Enron officials in 2000 and 2001, before the collapse of the Houston energy company, are under review by the House ethics committee, which is considering whether to investigate the fund-raising activities of the No. 2 leader in the House, Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Texas.
Enron officials map out in the e-mail how to get the most for their financial contributions, while politicians compete for credit in securing large campaign donations from the company.
(snip)
“The e-mails are an indication of what goes on behind closed doors,” said Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch, an ethics watchdog group that has filed suits over political fund-raising.
Both Democrats and Republicans, he said, “engage in a shell game that from outside may look at times technically legal, but when you get these communications on contributions solicited for the campaign, their technical arguments fall apart.”
In an e-mail from May 31, 2001, Enron lobbyists Rick Shapiro and Linda Robertson discuss a $50,000 contribution solicited by Republican organizations for a dinner saluting President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.
“With the assistance of Congressman Tom DeLay we were able to apply our previously contributed soft money toward this dinner. Consequently, we will be credited as giving $250,000 to this event, even though we are being asked to give only $50,000 in new soft money,” according to the e-mail sent to Enron’s now ex-chairman, Kenneth Lay, and a second executive.
Soft money contributions are made by companies and individuals to political parties. These donations to parties were outlawed by a campaign finance law that went into effect in 2002. Other organizations still can accept soft money dollars but are limited in how they can spend them.
The e-mails show “pretty clearly corporations were being asked for contributions by members of Congress who held the fate of legislation important to corporations in their hands,” said Trevor Potter, president and general counsel of the Campaign Legal Center, a campaign finance monitoring group.
Too bad regular folks can’t buy access. It really is abysmal. As much as I oppose the incumbent protection act err campaign finance reform, lawmakers should follow the law. They don’t follow the laws that they pass but seem really surprised when regular Joes don’t comply with said laws. Odd.
July 19th, 2004 at 6:36 am
“When buying and selling are controlled by legislation, the first things to be bought and sold are legislators.” -H.L. Menchken, I believe.
The best campaign finance reform is getting the government out of everyone’s business.