PACs Gave Nearly $65M to Deficit 'Super Committee' Members By Catalina Camia | USATODAY | August 15, 2011 Excerpts: The "super committee" of Congress tasked with finding at least $1.2 trillion to reduce the deficit has received millions of dollars from a wide range of special interests in the past decade, according to a new independent analysis. Political action committees have given nearly $65 million to the six Republicans and six Democrats on the Joint Special Committee on Deficit Reduction from 2001-2010, according to the analysis by MapLight.org, which tracks money in politics. Lawyers and law firms were the top donors by industry, contributing more than $31.5 million to the "super committee" members, the analysis shows. That amount is more than the $11.2 million donated by people in the securities and investment industry, the analysis shows. Democratic/liberal interests, health professionals and the real estate industry round out the top five industry donors. The "super committee," headed by Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington and Republican Rep. Jeb Hensarling of Texas, was created through the compromise deal between congressional leaders and President Obama to raise the nation's debt ceiling. Various watchdog groups have weighed in with their concerns about the "super committee" being beholden to special interests. "It becomes clear that in order to restore credibility, 'super committee' members need to keep the influence of moneyed interests out of negotiations that will impact the finances of those very same industries and companies," writes the Public Action Campaign Fund. The conservative Club for Growth is the top organization contributor, giving just under $1 million to the Republicans on the "super committee." The group, which supports fiscal conservatives, donated to Hensarling in 2002, Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., in 2006, and Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., the club's former president, in 2010. Microsoft, the University of California, Goldman Sachs and EMILY's List round out the top five organization contributor to the "super committee." Toomey did not vote for the debt-ceiling deal that created the panel, saying it was not a serious effort" to change the nation's fiscal course. Read full article: http://content.usatoday.com/communi...r-committee-deficit-campaign-contributions-/1 ..... IMO: The deal should have been 12 ordinary American citizens who would have at least come up with an honest, unbiased way to retrieve the $1.2Tr that they need to come up with by November. First, we fire all 12 "super committee" members under the 'conflict of interest' clause Then we could demandrepayment of all farm subsidies given to members of Congress, plus their entire pay thruout the long months of useless "negotiations" that America and the world were watching, plus the payment of Wall Street contractions suffered from the republicans/T-baggers withholding their votes in the debt ceiling raise fiasco. Then removal of all loopholes, Bush Tax Cuts, deductions from corporations and the wealthy, plus when properly audited would be a vast repayment toward our depleted revenue base, retroactive to year 2001. Then we would go through each department of the White House, getting rid of all the deadwood personnel. Then we would bring all troops home, to a vast saving to the American people, as well as troops that are still alive. Then we ransack the Pentagon and fire 90 percent of them. Then we legalize marijuana, and put all proceeds into our revenue base. No graft, bribes, or lobbying allowed. Then we have a weekend garage sale and sell off all war equipment, arms, munitions, tanks, humvees, and a few Army Generals in the mix. Then we legalize the porn industry with strict regulations, and take in the gigantic profit, and gradually wean Americans and the world market away from hard porn toward conservative porn. If all the foregoing doesn't make the $1.2Trillion cut, then we up the price and amount of marijuana and porn. I predict that our deficit will become nonexixtent, our exports would rise substantially, our revenue base would be replenished, jobs would be plentiful in the marijuana fields and porn studios, and the 12 ordinary citizens would be international heroes!!!!!
Granny says dem politicians gonna turn dis country into one big poorhouse... Deficit deal failure would pose crummy choice 19 Nov.`11 WASHINGTON (AP) – If the deficit-cutting supercommittee fails, Congress will face a crummy choice. Lawmakers can allow payroll tax cuts and jobless aid for millions to expire or they extend them and increase the nation's $15 trillion debt by at least $160 billion. See also: Fear of Spending Cuts: Automatic Cuts Seen by Some as Threat to U.S. Economy November 18, 2011 WASHINGTON (AP) — Just as the U.S. economy is making progress despite Europe's turmoil, here come two new threats.
Newsflash: every Congressman and Senator takes money from PAC's; Political Action Committees. Most fund raising entities are formed as PAC's. There is nothing wrong or illegal about that.
Translation for the liberally ignorant: That means that those Congressmen and Senators cannot pocket the cash for themselves. They have to use that money strictly for political gains and dues. More news at 11.
