Three times, Kerry nominations coincided with campaign donations

[x-g.o.p.er]

Hmmmm. This is something to ponder.

<snip> At least three times in his Senate career, Democratic presidential hopeful John Kerry has recommended individuals for positions at federal home loan banks just before or after receiving political contributions from the nominees, records show.

In one case, Kerry wrote to the Federal Housing Finance Board to urge the reappointment of a candidate just one day before a Kerry campaign committee received $1,000 from the nominee, the records show. <snip>

<snip> But a longtime government watchdog says it is common for Washington appointees to donate just before or after they are nominated.

"This is just business as usual in Washington," said Larry Noble, the former chief lawyer for the Federal Election Commission who now heads the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics. "Kerry is out there saying he is not being part of that game, yet he is the product of the same money system." <snip>

Anyone with any info on the Center for Responsive Politics? I've never heard of them before. If true, I'm a bit disappointed. Here's the full link below.


http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2004/02/05/politics0226EST0429.DTL&type=printable

[fjc]

1. Three times in 30 years, out of how many donations?

That's an average of once a decade? I think that is within the bounds of coincidence, don't you?

[Northwind]

2. 1 time in a thousand years is too many

Kerry is slime.

[fjc]

7. Nonesense.

[Mountainman]

11. Well I hope you get use to saying "President Slime"

[fjc]

15. You sound like Republicans.

[BootinUp]

3. Kerry became a Senator in '84 right?

That works out to 20 yrs. But you're right this is not a shocking story. It's just the result of Kerry being in the game for many years. Some of us want something different/better for Prez this time.

[displacedtexan]

4. $1000 to someone who can write a check for $160,000,000?

LOL!

[apsuman]

16. I hope you're not referring to his wife;s money...

He can't even spend her money for his campaign. He had to take out a loan against HIS equity in HER house.

[HFishbine]

5. You probably are familiar with the Center for Responsive Politics

They operate opensecrets.org, which is frequently used as a source by posters here.

http://www.opensecrets.org/

[Virgil]

6. This is a small thing

First, it may mean nothing and even then it is kind of small. The big thing is the establishment is getting behind there man and all we here is recommendations and poll numbers and Kerry is electable. Kerry himself hasn't gone into what he will change except George Bush. Now it looks like he is steam rolling along without saying anything and will pick up Edwards for some personality.

People talk about Skull and Bones, but he is now a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and so is Rand Beers who is his national security advisor. This is the group that will resemble PNAC we now see in power.

[leesa]

9. Yes, he's electable because the corporate media wants us to elect

one of their own. Why after all that has happened to the US lately would we want to maintain the status quo and continue to allow the rampant governmental corruption. Kerry will not investigate any of Bush's crimes nor will he labor to end corporate ownership of government and media and judicial systems.

[cosmicdot]

8. "no strings attached" would make such a nice mantra against this:

the contrast could be sharp, or subdued ... or "just business as usual in Washington"

John Kerry's Top Contributors

Skadden, Arps et al
$99,800
Piper Rudnick
$71,500
Citigroup Inc
$71,500
Mintz, Levin et al
$64,705
Goldman Sachs
$62,600
Robins, Kaplan et al
$62,250
Harvard University
$56,800
Hill, Holliday et al
$50,750
Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance
$50,250
Clifford Law Offices
$42,000
Morgan Stanley
$40,000
Bain Capital
$37,500
Akin, Gump et al
$34,250
International Profit Assn
$34,250
Holland & Knight
$33,485
UBS Americas
$32,150
FleetBoston Financial
$32,050
Hale & Dorr
$31,800
Sullivan & Cromwell
$30,300
Time Warner
$29,725

http://www.opensecrets.org/presidential/contrib.asp?id=N00000245&cycle=2004

[leesa]

10. Many of the same donors as Bush, hmmm...

[leftchick]

12. I agree leesa....

Sure makes one wonder if he would be any different at all from the current occupant.

[The_Gopher]

13. this is SO much bigger than ANYTHING bush has ever done!

[w4rma]

14. Kerry is pretty clean. I still don't support him, though. (n/t)