Posted on 12/04/2008 6:39:39 AM PST by tomnbeverly
(CBS) As Congress mulls over a bailout for U.S. automakers, some may be thinking about more than jobs and the economy.
The auto industry spent nearly $50 million lobbying Congress in the first nine months of this year.
And people tied to the auto industry gave another $15 million in campaign contributions, CBS News investigative correspondent Sharyl Attkisson reports.
It's not surprising that a lot of that money went to members of Congress from Michigan, where the auto industry is the biggest employer and politicians are passionate advocates for their constituents.
Take Sen. Carl Levin, who received $438,304 from the automotive industry. And in the House, Rep. Joe Knollenberg received $879,327. Rep. John Dingell got nearly a million from the industry. All have enjoyed generous support from the auto industry over their careers, with GM and Ford as their two top contributors. All support a bailout.
But nobody's been a bigger advocate for Motor City interests than Dingell. And for him, the stakes aren't just political, they're personal.
"There's an actual conflict," said Ryan Alexander of the nonprofit group Taxpayers for Common Sense. "His personal financial health, you know, the wealth of his family is tied up in the car industry."
Dingell's wife Debbie once worked as a lobbyist for GM.
When she married the congressman, she became a senior GM executive at an undisclosed salary. And we found the couple has extensive GM assets.
Dingell's current financial disclosure filed in May lists GM stock worth up to $350,000, options worth up to $1 million more, and a GM pension fund. In 2000, among the Dingells' GM assets were stock options worth up to $5 million.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
Why am I being forced to pay via bailout for companies that fund the Democrats campaigns?
because your elected officials are spineless.
Only persons legally registered to vote for someone running for federal office or holding a federal office may donate money or anything else of value to the person running for federal office or currently holding a federal office".
This would never pass, of course, but if it did it would fix a lot of things.
Dingellberry is riding dirty.
Blatant conflicts of interest. Ethically speaking, they should all recuse themselves from the hearings and any votes on a potential bailout. But since Rats don’t have any ethics, it won’t happen.
I’d be more assured if there were at least means testing in order to register to vote.
Let the lobbyists and others spend their donations as they wish.
I wonder how much the UAW’s spending....
Damn right every big company in America has to fight the idiots in congress every day if they want to survive.
Congress couldn't run a marble counting business without screwing it up. But they sure like to try to run everyone elses business.
Conservative Taxpayers should be exempt from paying tax dollars that fund the Bailout since the Auto Industry lobby’s only the Democrats....
Wait I thought OBAMA didn’t take money from Lobbyists?
LIARS
I'm sure she was hired because of her top expertise and only after a super competitive recruitment process:-(
“Take Sen. Carl Levin, who received $438,304 from the automotive industry. And in the House, Rep. Joe Knollenberg received $879,327. Rep. John Dingell got nearly a million from the industry. All have enjoyed generous support from the auto industry over their careers, with GM and Ford as their two top contributors. All support a bailout.”
Hmmm... Are these Democrat or Republican politicians? The article doesn’t say. /sarcasm
Corporations are forced to play in the system that our crooked politicians created and perpetuate.
Politicians make it known that justice and/or favors are for sale and if you don’t pay you lose out to those that do.
It isn’t the lobbyists and corporations that are the crux of the problem - it is the filthy, crooked, thieving politicians who have declared themselves above the law.
>>Dingell’s current financial disclosure filed in May lists GM stock worth up to $350,000, options worth up to $1 million more, and a GM pension fund. In 2000, among the Dingells’ GM assets were stock options worth up to $5 million.<<
I would imagine these assets have dropped in value by 90% seeing as GM shares went from $29.44 to $4.50 in the past year.
Amen! If these clowns in Congress didn’t have so much power, then companies would not be forced to pay blackmail money just to be left alone.
Prime example - Hillary Clinton. She once ranted and raved about “evil big pharma”, so they started contributing to her coffers to protect themselves. She stopped criticizing them. Ditto for how she ended up on the board of Wal Mart.
Don’t blame lobbyists. Blame sleazy politicians and US voters for giving them so much power over our lives and businesses.
If Congress approves a bailout of the auto makers I will not buy another Ford, Chrysler, or Chevy.
I own a Chevy and a Chrysler now and I agree with you. If taxpayers are required to subsidize the auto industry, without disbanding their unions, I too will never buy from them again.
Maybe its high time for a brand new American Auto industry. Let the free market decide what it wants to do.
same here.
I’m sick of bailing out losers , both corporate and personal.
I’m with you. I’ve always been a proponent of Buy American! Even though most of the parts for my Ford were not made in America.
There is nothing American about this adventure in socialism!
...and another thing..hey obama, where’s that birth certificate?!
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