- NEWS
- SPORTS
- BUSINESS
- ENTERTAINMENT
- LIFE
- TRAVEL
- OPINION
Congressional leadership PACs: A new way to work the system
October 1st, 2009, 5:00 am · 15 Comments · posted by Dena Bunis, Washington Bureau Chief
It takes millions and millions of dollars to elect people to the House and Senate. What wasn’t clear until Pulitzer Prize winning reporter Marcus Stern and his colleagues at Pro Publica published their report this week was that for some lawmakers, thousands of dollars of the money they raise goes to pay for such things as lavish golf games and deep sea fishing excursions.
Stern explains the way lawmakers do this even in the face of new rules tightening up the relationships between lobbyists and lawmakers. They create Leadership PACs, a new way to collect campaign contributions and evade pesky Federal Election Commission individual contribution limits.Click here to read Stern’s piece.
The Center for Responsive Politics keeps track of these leadership PACs and I checked to see whether our Orange County and California reps have begun using this method of fundraising.
Of the six house members who represent OC, two have leadership PACS: Reps. Ken Calvert, R-Corona and John Campbell, R-Irvine. But compared to the hundreds of thousands of dollars that have been funneled into these PACs by some, these two lawmakers are dealing in chump change.
Click here to go to the Center’s Open Secrets site and look at the leadership PACs. Under FEC rules, someone can only contribute $2,300 per election cycle to a candidate. But PACs can get donations of up to $5,000 per election.
Calvert’s “Eureka PAC” raised $44,000 in the 2008 election cycle and $115,934 for the 2006 races. As of the end of August Calvert’s PAC hasn’t raised any money yet.
“Like many Members, the Eureka PAC was formed to support other
Candidates,’’ Calvert said in an email. “I plan on keeping the PAC active and as Republican prospects improve due to the radical agenda of a liberal Congress, the PAC will most likely become more active again.”
Most of Eureka’s money has come from such corporate PACs as the National Association of Realtors and AT&T. And most has gone to help other Republicans get elected. I didn’t see any expenses other than contributions and administrative costs.
Campbell’s “OCPAC” raised $93,173 during the 2008 election cycle and gave most of that money to the National Republican Campaign Committee and individual candidates. He’s raised only $5,000 in leadership PAC money this year and given $26,000 to the NRCC, in part from money left over from the last election cycle.
Most of Campbell’s money has come from the major accounting firm of Deloitte & Touche and the American Banker’s Association and American Association of CPAs. Campbell is a CPA and also sits on the Finance Services Committee. Like Calvert, none of Campbell’s PAC money has been spent on any outside activities.
In an email, Campbell’s staff said that the congressman has a leadership PAC in an effort to win back the GOP majority.
California’s two Democratic senators have much more lucrative PACs. But they too have confined their spending to candidate-related matters.
Sen. Barbara Boxer’s “PAC for change” raised $615,389 during the 2008 election cycle and spent $829,487. Boxer gave $141,000 of that PAC money to Douglas Boxer and Associates, the political consulting firm owned by her son. And $121,471 was spent to maintain her PAC’s Web site.
Boxer’s staff has been questioned before about her hiring her son for political consulting work. They have said that he has been a longtime part of the senator’s political team.
This is a pretty familiar practice among lawmakers, some of whom have spouses on their payroll. Former Rep. Bob Dornan was famous for paying his family members to run his campaign.
So far this election cycle, Boxer, who is running for re-election next year, has raised $282,098 and $36,000 has gone to her son’s consulting firm.
Boxer’s PAC has received most of her money from law firms, the entertainment industry and labor unions.
The rest of the money she raised went to almost exclusively Democratic candidates and $30,000 to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. She also gave $10,000 to Hillary Rodham Clinton’s presidential bid.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s “Fund for the Majority” raised $258,050 during the 2008 election cycle and spent $242,656. Of that, $109,000 went to Democratic candidates and $117,620 for salaries and other administrative costs for the PAC.
Like Boxer, Feinstein gave $5,000 to Clinton’s presidential bid and the senior senator’s PAC also gave $5,000 to Boxer.
So far this year, Feinstein’s leadership PAC has raised $96,000 and has spent $56,686, including $32,500 to Democratic senators’ campaigning - $5,000 of which went to Boxer.
Feinstein’s largest donors in the 1008 cycle were Gallo Wines and Northrop Grumman and so far this cycle the PAC’s biggest contributors include Ernest & Young, Integrated Data and Northrop Grumman.
Reader Comments
Comments are encouraged, but you must follow our User Agreement.- Keep it civil and stay on topic.
- No profanity, vulgarity, racial slurs or personal attacks.
- People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked.
15 Comments
Leave a Reply
You can follow this blog: on 
Politicians are slime balls! They pay $540 a year for FULL health coverage, now thats the coverage I want…
TERM LIMITS FOR ALL OF THEM….THE PRESIDENT CAN SERVE TWO, FOUR YEAR TERMS…..THAT NEEDS TO APPLY TO ALL SENATORS AND CONGRESSMAN AS WELL!
THIS IS THE ONLY WAY TO “BREAK THE BACK” OF THE LOBBYISTS, SPECIAL INTERESTS AND ESPECIALLY, THE POLITICIANS WHO CONTINUE TO RAPE AMERICA FOR SELF-GAIN…..!
Hey, come on. If it wasn’t about easy money why would these multi-millionaires waste their time running for elected office and initially spending boo-coo bucks to get that seat of power???? To help you??? hah! Stop being so naive, my fellow citizens. Throw out all the bogus propoganda you were fed in elementary and HS civics classes. It’s a brand new day. It’s all about the BIG MONEY. Why do you think the majority democrat congress has shot down public option healthcare and are opting for a system that penalizes the working poor with an excise tax of $1500-$3800 if they don’t buy a private medical policy for a corporate insurer??? There is even talk of charging the delinquent with a crime and fining him $25000! And this tax is directed against the working poor who cannot afford insurance yet make too much to get medi-cal! hah! Those are the ones your democrats are hosing into the ground!! Those working class folks who they purport to protect!!! Hilarious!
Yes oco they run for office to gain money but also very important POWER!!!
Politicians;
Awash in cash and 100% health care, not insurance but actual treatments, in DC for $503 per year. No expense spared, no test overlooked and specialists on call.
About six weeks ago Barbara Boxer chastised a General for calling her “Mam” (as in “Yes Mam”) at a senate hearing. She told the general she worked hard for the title of ‘Senator’ and preferred that name.
Ms Boxer, you bought that name. The general undoubtedly earned his name.
Heck, Feinstein isn’t even on a finance committee in the senate and somehow she finagled a way to author a bill that gave a huge bailout to the FDIC. It was later learned that at about this same time her husband was awarded with a big fat FDIC contract to managed foreclosed properties! hah! You think there are any ongoing investigations on this? Nope. Not as far as I know. But, of course, her friend Babs Boxer chairs the Senate Ethics Committee (oxy-moron) so what would one expect? It’s all about the BIG MONEY, folks. It’s got nothing to do with what’s best for you or our country. Why do you think Wall Street was allowed to take down the economy? Follow the money trail. You don’t have to be a nuclear physicist to connect the dots. Just watch what is happening around you. Keep your eyes open and your brain turned on. That’s all.
Isn’t it ironic that just a week ago “Miss.” Boxer was ranting about the national tone on blog sites was bordering as “Angry” and that she felt that people chiming in with their frustrations could lead to a lynch mob mentality… Is there even one “real” American who can feel sympathy for her pathetic rants. She has one thing right.. this country is overly ripe for revolution and yes “Miss Boxer” you and your politician cronies have every reason to be afraid. You and your friends have done everything right to incite the tinderbox we now have. So much for “By the people and For the people”. May as well change it to “By the Politicians, For the politicians”.
God Help Us All!
The people of Calvert’s district have been on to him for some time now. Hence his shaky ground for re-election.
“Feinstein’s largest donors in the 1008 cycle”
I know Senator Feinstein is old but I don’t think she is over a thousand years old! ! ! !
Great editing OCR…
“Sen. Barbara Boxer’s “PAC for change” raised $615,389 during the 2008 election cycle and spent $829,487. Boxer gave $141,000 of that PAC money to Douglas Boxer and Associates, the political consulting firm owned by her son. And $121,471 was spent to maintain her PAC’s Web site”
And she CHAIRS the Senate Ethics Committee!!!
hah!
You can’t make this stuff up!! Even Walt Disney wasn’t that creative!!
Once again, fact trumps fiction!!
Rome is Burning.
Listen, there were over 50,000 secret off-shore bank accounts with rich american depositors at UBS (largest swiss bank) recently uncovered. The swiss resisted giving up any of the names. Finally, the IRS persuaded them to give up 5,000 of the 50,000 identities. THIS WAS ONLY ONE OFF-SHORE BANK! How many other rich americans hide their assets in off-shore banks to avoid paying taxes? The number must be HUGE! And practically every member of congress is a multi-multi millionaire. These days you HAVE TO BE so you can buy a seat of power! How many self-purported patriots who wear a little american flags on their lapels have off-shore accounts to avoid paying their obligatory taxes?? hmmm.
TERM LIMITS FOR ALL OF THEM….THE PRESIDENT CAN SERVE TWO, FOUR YEAR TERMS…..THAT NEEDS TO APPLY TO ALL SENATROS AND CONGRESSMAN AS WELL!
THIS IS THE ONLY WAY TO BREAK THE BACK OF THE LOBBYISTS, SPECIAL INTERESTS AND ESPECIALLY THE POLITICIANS WHO CONTINUE TO RAPE AMERICA FOR SELF-GAIN…..!
What do you expect? We’ve got the finest politicians that money can buy.
http://www.flypmedia.com/issues/plus/21/#1/1
The FLYP/ProPublica story is pretty interesting on what these PACs are up to..