by Jack Lee
According to a recent AP story, about 150 of the 300 largest companies who received bailout money, paid out $77 million for lobbying and $37 million for campaign contributions for the 2008 election. That got them TARP bailout money of $305.2 billion or a whopping return of 267,208 percent!
People, I can’t make this stuff up! It’s well beyond even the most fertile of imagination. Is it any wonder the people are so fed up? And now this parting shot: Even in the best economic times, you wont find an investment with a greater payoff than what these companies have been getting, said Sheila Krumholz, executive director, Center for Responsive Politics.
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Speaking of lobbyist/special interest money, our local ex-Assemblyman Rick Keene, has raised well over $900,000 in contributions from mostly special interests groups during his last 12 months in office. One wonders if he had time to anything else in Sacramento? With the carry over of campaign cash and new special interest money, he now has a little over $1.2 million to use in his bid for the Senate next year. Keene’s office spun this story about special interest money as evidence of his popular support within the district. But, take a closer look. Most of this money came from a mere handful of special interest donors. This is far from the “popular support” his spin-miesters would like the sheeple to believe.
Keene’s tenacious bid for the Senate began early almost from the day he was elected into in the Assembly and most recently that plan included handing off his termed out Assembly job to his man Dan Logue. And that is exactly what happened, because the voters didn’t understand the dynasty Keene was building to further his own political career. Logue won easily with the help of Keene’s donors behind him. Now Mr. Keene’s massive campaign cash has all but assured his next victory. The Senate election will be but a mere formality.
I’ve been told politely to shut up about this because Mr. Keene is quote, “a good Republican”. But, when his actions infringes on a fair and open election process I have to speak up. People like Mr. Keene keep our elections limited to a very few good ol boys that are willing to join his political dynasty system. This is fundamentally wrong and no amount of “partisanship” can ever justify that corrupting influence. When we go there – when we are prepared to do whatever it takes to win, we’re saying the ends justify the means and then…we have lost our way; We’ve sold our soul to win at all costs and in my humble way of thinking, no victory is worth that.