It’s like a disease, a plague that continuously infects our democracy, for which no treatment seems to work. Laws are passed by Congress to try and control the scourge of the lobbyists, but lobbyists and the politicians find ways to circumvent the laws and hook up again to benefit the special interests- the clients of the lobbyists. However, some observers would not describe the problem as a disease but rather as an addiction, like crack that binds politicians to their dealers, the lobbyists, to obtain the money necessary to keep them in power. And with all the conflict going on in Washington, here is an area where bipartisanship is rampant, with both Republicans and Democrats unable or unwilling to kick the crack habit, to go through withdrawal and dissociate themselves from their dealers.
Junkets to Scotland and other destinations that were actually expensive golf and recreational trips involving Jack Abramoff, Congressmen Tom DeLay and Bob Ney, and members of their staffs, as well as a number of other politically connected figures, were seen by members of Congress as blackening the eyes of this August body. Shamed by the ongoing publicity and evidence of quid pro quo, Congress enacted legislation in 2007 making it illegal for lobbyists to provide Senators and Representatives with gifts of any significance.
But lo and behold, the politicians who enacted these laws and their lobbyist friends, came up with ways to bypass these very same laws, so that the interactions between the lobbyists and politicians could continue in luxury settings, with gourmet foods and all sorts of fun and games. Leadership PACs of politicians are allowed to accept money from lobbyists and special interests. In this way, the PACs can pay the expenses of these politicians for lodging and catering on different types of trips, including golf outings, skiing, hunting, and so forth. Recent Congressional trips have included Vail, Napa Valley wine country, premier hotels in Puerto Rico, South Florida, Las Vegas, and Bermuda. The donors to these PACs attend the events and intermix with the legislators and their staffs, paying the costs of their own travel and hotel rooms, as well as contributing to the politicians’ fundraisers. This gives them the opportunity to promote matters that concern them or their clients to the legislators while enhancing the legislators’ PACs with large sums of money.
Not surprisingly, there is no public disclosure of the amounts raised at these outings, and legislators are not interested in releasing this information. The obvious conflict of interest generated by these events does not seem to bother politicians on either side of the aisle and without new legislation to prohibit such activities it is certain they will continue. So the legislation enacted in 2007 by Congress to prevent these kinds of events with lobbyists is now essentially worthless. It seems that American politicians cannot be shamed.
According to statistics compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics, there are currently 11,140 lobbyists in Washington, or 25.8 lobbyists for each of the 432 members of Congress. They’re obviously making a very good living representing various special interests and contributing money into the coffers of Washington politicians to be granted the word that means everything to them- access.
Resurrecting Democracy
www.robertlevinebooks.com
Political junkie, Vietnam vet, neurologist- three books on aging and dementia. Book on health care reform in 2009- Shock Therapy for the American Health Care System. Book on the need for a centrist third party- Resurrecting Democracy- A Citizen’s Call for a Centrist Third Party published in 2011. Aging Wisely, published in August 2014 by Rowman and Littlefield. Latest book- The Uninformed Voter published May 2020