mcconnell campaign finance report

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Cashing In On Obstruction How Mitch McConnell¶V Abuse of the Filibuster and Other Senate Rules Benefits His Big Money Donors By Tam Doan and Kurt Walters of Public Campaign Action Fund January 2013

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Report from the Public Campaign Action Fund linking McConnell's campaign donations and political positions.

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Page 1: McConnell Campaign Finance Report

   

 

Cashing  In  On  Obstruction    

How  Mitch  McConnell  Abuse  of  the  Filibuster  and  Other  Senate  Rules  Benefits  His  Big  Money  Donors  

   

   

   

By  Tam  Doan  and  Kurt  Walters  of  Public  Campaign  Action  Fund  January  2013  

 

 

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Executive  Summary    Since  Republicans  lost  the  majority  in  2006  and  Sen.  Mitch  McConnell  (R-­‐Ky.)  became  minority  leader  in  2007,  the  United  States  Senate  has  seen  an  unprecedented  level  of  filibustering  and  obstruction.  McConnell  has  been  at  the  helm  of  a  scorched  earth  policy  of  blocking  nearly  every  bill  and  nominee  that  comes  before  the  Senate,  imposing  an  anti-­‐democratic  super-­‐majority  requirement  to  advance  any  legislation  or  appointment.  This  has  meant  little  to  no  work  on  a  wide  range  of  lingering  problems  from  anemic  job  growth  to  unwarranted  giveaways  of  tax  dollars  to  oil  companies  to  the  highest  rates  of  inequality  since  the  Gilded  Age.    

draising  career  with  his  willingness  to  foment  legislative  dysfunction,  which  serves  to  increase  his  power  and  enrich  his  corporate  donors  while  leaving  American  families  to  struggle.  The  eight  cases  of  obstruction  examined  in  this  report  span  several  important  policies  and  highly  competent  judicial  and  administrative  nominees.  These  cases  are  among  the  many  instances  where  McConnell  placed  the  interests  of  his  big  money  donors  ahead  of  Kentuckians  and  everyday  families.    Highlights  

    On  the  very  day  debate  began  on  a  bill  to  repeal  subsidies  to  Big  Oil,  an  astonishing  

$131,500  in  campaign  contributions  passed  from  the  hands  of  oil  donors  in  Midland,  -­‐election  war  chest.  Three  days  later  the  bill  failed  by  

filibuster.    

  Companies  that  lobbied  against  bringing  jobs  back  to  America  and  ending  tax  breaks  for  offshoring  have  given  McConnell  one  million  dollars  to  win  his  elections  and  look  out  for  their  interests.  Big  McConnell  donors  such  as  GE,  Microsoft,  and  Exxon  Mobil  also  have  billions  in  untaxed  profits  stashed  overseas.  

    Despite  once  supporting  transparency,  McConnell  has  led  the  effort  to  block  the  

DISCLOSE  Act  and  keep  Americans  in  the  dark  about  the  money  flowing  into  elections.  Wealthy  individuals  and  companies  spending  millions  in  secret  money  have  overwhelmingly  helped    ambition  to  become  majority  leader  of  the  Senate.  

    Sen.  McConnell  took  the  unusual  step  of  filibustering  a  district  court  nominee,  former  

trial  lawyer  Jack  McConnell,  who  was  vehemently  opposed  by  the  insurance  industry  and  the  U.S.  Chamber  of  Commerce  after  Jack  McConnell  won  a  multi-­‐billion  dollar  case  against  lead  paint  companies.  Sen.  McConnell  has  received  $1.7  million  from  insurance  interests,  and  has  taken  tens  of  thousands  of  dollars  from  one  of  the  lead  paint  companies  in  the  case  and  its  parent  company.    

   

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Introduction    Since  Republicans  lost  the  majority  in  2006  and  Sen.  Mitch  McConnell  (R-­‐Ky.)  became  minority  leader  in  2007,  the  Senate  has  seen  a  level  of  filibustering  and  obstruction  that  is  literally  

   The  number  of  filibusters1  jumped  to  an  average  of  130  for  each  of  the  Congresses  in  which  Republicans  have  been  in  the  minority  (110th  through  112th),  exactly  double  the  average  of  65  per  two-­‐year  session  from  when  Democrats  were  last  in  the  minority.  This  is  a  historical  aberration.  There  were  more  filibusters  in  2012  alone  (67)  than  there  were  in  the  54  years  between  1917  and  1970  (58).      

Use  of  Filibuster  Over  Time  Via  Cloture  Votes2    

   Unfortunately,  this  has  real  consequences  for  the  amount  of  legislation  that  is  passed  to  benefit  the  American  people.  The  112th  Congress  passed  only  212  public  bills  through  December  21,  2012,  significantly  lower  than  any  two-­‐year  period  at  least  as  far  back  as  World  War  II.3  This  is  not  just  about  divided  government.  When  Democrats  last  held  the  Senate  with  a  Republican-­‐controlled  house,  from  1981-­‐1987,  Congress  still  managed  to  pass  an  average  of  587  public  bills  each  session.4  

                                                                                                           1  This  is  measured  by  the  number  of  cloture  motions  filed.  Successfully  invoking  cloture  takes  60  votes  and  ends  a  filibuster.  2    Accessed  December  28,  2012:  http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/clotureCounts.htm  3   Brennan  Center  for  Justice,  November  16,  2012.  http://www.brennancenter.org/content/resource/curbing_filibuster_abuse  4   Brennan  Center  for  Justice,  November  16,  2012.  http://www.brennancenter.org/content/resource/curbing_filibuster_abuse  

0  

20  

40  

60  

80  

100  

120  

140  

160  

65  

67  

69  

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73  

75  

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111  

Congress  (2  Yr  Period)  

Motions  Filed  

Votes  on  Cloture  

Cloture  Invoked  

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Behind  this  dysfunction  and  gridlock   break  with  Senate  traditions  and  the  culture  of  bipartisan  compromise.  Instead  he  has  increasingly  used  Senate  rules  to  block  any  legislation  he  disfavors,  even  if  it  holds  broad  popular  support  and  a  majority  of  votes  in  the  legislature.    Looking  through  the  list  of  bills  and  nominees  that  Republican  senators  have  filibustered  in  the  past  six  years,  a  common  theme  emerges.  Rather  than  addressing  the  concerns  of  everyday  people  in  Kentucky,  Sen.  McConnell  and  his  allies  have  spent  their  energy  abusing  Senate  rules  to  block  important  policies  and  appointments  opposed  by  a  small  number  of  politically  powerful  groups,  many  of  which  are  large  sources  of  campaign  cash  to   -­‐election  campaigns.    As  this  report  will  show,  special  interests  such  as  Big  Oil,  corporate  tax  dodgers,  insurance  

.  McConnell  has  even  threatened  to  hold  hostage  middle-­‐class  tax  cuts  and  other  policies  important  to  everyday  Americans  until  he  gets  his  way.  Kentuckians  could  rightly  wonder  whom  Mitch  McConnell  is  standing  up  for  in  Congress.    The  Senate  Rules  Fight      Faced  with  McConnell  and  his  ca -­‐democratic  super-­‐majority  requirement  for  even  routine  pieces  of  legislation  and  nominations,  even  Senate  traditionalists,  like  Sen.  Harry  Reid  (D-­‐Nev.)  who  opposed  reforming  the  filibuster  as  recently  as  2010,  now  support  reforming  Senate  rules  to  reduce  abuse  of  the  filibuster  and  other  obstructionist  methods.    Reid  and  his  colleagues  in  the  Senate,  including  Senators  Merkley  (D-­‐Ore.)  and  Udall  (D-­‐N.M.),  

requiring  senators  to  actually  take  the  floor  and  speak  in  order  to  block  legislation,  and  eliminating  the  ability  to  

 if  necessary,  allowing  changes  to  Senate  rules  through  simple  majority  vote  on  the  first  day  of  a  new  Congress  rather  than  the  two-­‐thirds  super-­‐majority  it  requires  otherwise.  McConnell  sees  this  as  an  affront:    

What  the  majority  leader  is  saying  is  he  will  break  the  rules  of  the  Senate  in  order  to  change  the  rules  of  the  Senate.  It  has  been  the  case  in  the  past  that  it  took  a  super  majority  of  67  which  of  course  meant  that  most  rules  changes  occurred  because  the  two  leaders  agreed  to  them  and  were  proposing  them  jointly,  instead  what  the  majority  leader  is  saying  is  that  he  will  propose  to  change  the  rules  with  51  votes,  meaning  his  side  gets  to  decide  what  the  rules  are.5  

                                                                                                           5    Congressional  Record  Vol.  158,  No.  148,  Government  Printing  Office,  November  26,  2012.  http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CREC-­‐2012-­‐11-­‐26/html/CREC-­‐2012-­‐11-­‐26-­‐pt1-­‐PgS6878-­‐3.htm  

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In  fact,  McConnell  is  objecting  to  the  very  same  technique  he  supported  when  Republicans  had  n  proponent  of  the  nuclear  option,  another  

name  for  the  constitutional  option.  While  in  the  majority  and  facing  Democratic  filibusters  of  

this  obstruction  necessitates  that  we  restore  these  norms  and  traditions,  and  that  includes  through  the  use  of  the  so-­‐ 6    

of  obstructionist  tactics  and  objecting  to  Senate  rules  reform.  This  turnaround  reflects  a  trend  with  McConnell,  who  seems  willing  to  switch  his  principles  to  whatever  position  affords  him  the  most  power.  In  a  political  system  where  money  is  power,  McConnell  can  gain  influence  by  abusing  Senate  rules  in  ways  he  once  condemned  as  long  as  he  protects  the  bottom  line  of  his  large,  corporate  donors.      

                                                                                                           6   Washington  Times,  March  23,  2005,  A1.  

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7    

over  his  career  reveals  key  trends:  McConnell  has  become  increasingly  dependent  on  donors  that  can  give  more,  come  from  outside  Kentucky,  and  represent  corporate  interests,  putting  him  farther  and  farther  out  of  touch  with  the  needs  of  Kentucky  residents.      Over  his  last  three  elections,  McConnell  has  honed  his  fundraising  skills  and  money  has  followed  his  rise  to  power.  He  went  from  raising  about  $4  million  in  itemized  contributions  in  the  six  year  period  leading  up  to  his  1996  election  and  more  than  $20  million  for  his  2008  election.  

 

   

Over  a  long  career  of  fundraising,  Sen.  McConnell  has  raised  a  staggering  $45  million  at  least,  looking  at  just  his  campaign  committee.8  He  has  raised  an  additional  $6  million  to  his  leadership  

Republicans  and  firm  up  his  leadership  status.        McConnell  was  also  able  to  turn  his  fundraising  prowess  into  influence  with  his  colleagues  when  he  served  as  chairman  of  the  National  Republican  Senatorial  Committee.  In  the  1998  and  2000  cycles a  rare  two-­‐term  stint McConnell  brought  in  $91  million  and  then  $96  million  to  be  distributed  amongst  Republican  colleagues  and  candidates,  following  just  $72  million  being  raised  in  1996.  All  the  while,  McConnell  was  leading  efforts  against  campaign  finance  reform  that  would  place  limits  on  the  kind  of  soft  money  he  depended  on  at  the  NRSC.    

                                                                                                           7  Unless  otherwise  noted,  all  information  on  campaign  contributions  is  based  on  analysis  of  data  provided  by  the  Center  for  Responsive  Politics,  downloaded  in  bulk  on  October  29,  2012  from  the  Sunlight  Foundation  (http://data.influenceexplorer.com).  Itemized  campaign  contribution  data  (for  donors  giving  more  than  $200  in  a  cycle)  were  available  starting  from  1989  to  June  30,  2012.  Thus,  2012  cycle  totals  are  partial.  Unless  otherwise  noted,  totals  include  

 8  This  career  total  since  1989  is  provided  CRP  and  includes  records  available  starting  in  1989  (McConnell  was  first  elected  in  1984).  This  amount  does  not  include  money  raised  by  his  leadership  PAC,  Bluegrass  Committee.  Accessed  December  16,  2012:  https://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.php?cycle=Career&type=I&cid=N00003389&newMem=N  

$0  

$5  

$10  

$15  

$20  

$25  

1996   2002   2008  

Campa

ign  Mon

ey  

(Millions)  

Election  

Total  Itemized  Contributions  Over  6  Year  Election  Cycles  

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Unlike  most  other  elected  officials  who  view  raising  money  as  a  necessary  evil,  McConnell  relishes  fundraising.  "When  he  asked  for  money,  his  eyes  would  shine  like  diamonds,"  said  former  Sen.  Alan  Simpson  (R-­‐Wyo.).  "He  obviously  loved  it."9  Control  over  the  disbursement  of  that  money  also  gave  McConnell  tremendous  sway  with  his  colleagues,  which  he  was  able  to  cash  in  as  votes  for  majority  whip  in  2002.    More  large  donors  Over  his  career,  only  about  16  percent  of   has  come  from  small  donors,  measured  by  unitemized  contributions  where  donors  gave  less  than  $200  in  a  cycle.  mere  five  percent.10  McConnell  is  much  more  reliant  on  the  large,  itemized  contributions  of  at  least  $200.  Among  his  large  donors,  the  average  total  contribution  per  cycle  has  risen  over  the  years,  particularly  among  PACs,  which  gave  about  $1,500  on  average  in  the  1994  cycle  and  nearly  $4,000  in  the  most  recent  cycle.  This  increase  minority  leader,  peaking  in  his  last  election  in  2008.    Average  Total  Contribution  Per  Cycle  for  PACs  and  Individuals  

 

         

                                                                                                           9   Lexington  Herald-­‐Leader,  October  15,  2006.  http://wincoast.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-­‐43005.html  10  http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.php?type=C&cid=N00003389&newMem=N&cycle=2012  

$0  

$1,000  

$2,000  

$3,000  

$4,000  

$5,000  

$6,000  

1994   1996   1998   2000   2002   2004   2006   2008   2010   2012  

INDs  

PACs  

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More  out-­‐of-­‐state  donors  As  McConnell  gained  rank  within  the  Senate,  the  share  of  individual  contributions  he  took  from  Kentucky  residents  declined,  reaching  an  all  time  low  of  13  percent  in  the  2012  cycle.  Meanwhile,  individual  contributions  from  Texas,  the  Washington  area  (D.C.,  Maryland,  and  Virginia),  and  the  New  York  tri-­‐state  area  (New  York,  New  Jersey,  and  Connecticut),  have  increased,  represe oil  tycoons,  lobbyists,  and  bankers.11  In  the  2012  cycle,  the  proportion  of  money  from  Texas  (20%)  and  the  New  York  tri-­‐state  area  (19%)  each  surpassed  the  share  of  money  from  inside  Kentucky  (13%).      Percentage  of  Itemized  Individual  Contributions  from  Kentucky  Compared  to  Other  States  

 

   More  corporate  interests  The  money  McConnell  takes  from  business  interests  such  as  banks,  hedge  fund  managers,  health  insurers,  lobbyists,  and  oil  companies  dominates  his  campaign  money  profile.  This  type  of  money  peaked  in  his  most  recent  election  in  2008  and  is  on  track  to  play  a  large  role  in  his  2014  campaign.    Giving  at  least  $8.7  million  in  contributions  to  his  campaign  committee  and  leadership  PAC  over  his  career,  Wall  Street  is  by  far  the  largest  sector  of  donors  to  McConnell.  Within  the  finance  sector,  his  biggest  supporters  come  from  the  securities  and  investment  industry,  followed  by  real  estate,  insurance  and  commercial  bank  interests.  

     

                                                                                                           11    

0%  

10%  

20%  

30%  

40%  

50%  

60%  

70%  

80%  

90%  

1990   1992   1994   1996   1998   2000   2002   2004   2006   2008   2010   2012  

KY  

DC-­‐MD-­‐VA  

NY-­‐CT-­‐NJ  

TX  

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 Business-­‐Labor-­‐Ideological-­‐Other  Split  Over  Time  

 

       

 Total  Contributions  by  Sector  

 

Sector   Total  Finance,  Insurance  &  Real  Estate     $8,712,881  Manufacturing,  Sales  &  Services   $4,796,563  Health   $4,341,193  Lawyers  &  Lobbyists   $3,195,248  Agribusiness   $2,968,881  Energy  &  Natural  Resources   $2,917,008  Ideological/Single-­‐Issue   $2,648,708  Communications/Electronics   $2,042,186  Construction   $1,936,677  Transportation   $1,701,098  Defense   $680,699  Other   $632,556  Party  Cmtes   $154,724  Labor   $69,750  Joint  Candidate  Cmtes   $11,911  

 

Total  Contributions  by  Industry       Industry   Total  1   Securities  &  Investment   $2,463,701  2   Lawyers/Law  Firms   $2,007,866  3   Health  Professionals   $1,794,191  4   Real  Estate   $1,702,792  5   Insurance   $1,669,632  6   Oil  &  Gas   $1,336,211  7   Lobbyists   $1,187,382  8   Pro-­‐Israel   $1,169,435  9   Commercial  Banks   $1,073,355  10   Hospitals/Nursing  Homes   $954,850  11   Pharma/Health  Products   $954,649  12   General  Contractors   $836,721  13   Misc  Manufact.  &  Distributing   $812,662  14   Mining   $751,599  15   Misc  Finance   $747,984  16   TV/Movies/Music   $694,075  17   Tobacco   $648,969  18   Republican/Conservative   $630,040  19   Business  Services   $625,570  20   Electric  Utilities   $604,799  

 

$0  

$2,000,000  

$4,000,000  

$6,000,000  

$8,000,000  

$10,000,000  

$12,000,000  

1990   1992   1994   1996   1998   2000   2002   2004   2006   2008   2010   2012  

Business  Labor  Ideological  Other  

*Note  that  unaffiliated  individuals  are  not  included  in  the  chart  above.  Such  individuals  have  either  not  been  coded  or  could  not  be  readily  categorized  into  sectors,  including  those  reported  as  retired,  as  homemakers,  or  without  employer  or  occupation  information.  

*Note  that  unaffiliated  individuals  are  not  included  in  the  chart  above.  Such  individuals  have  either  not  been  coded  or  could  not  be  readily  categorized  into  sectors,  including  those  reported  as  retired,  as  homemakers,  or  without  employer  or  occupation  information.  

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More  personal  wealth  

disclosure,  has  grown  dramatically  in  recent  years,  exceeding  the  average  wealth  of  his  fellow  Senators  starting  in  2008.  In  2010,  he  was  the  tenth  wealthiest  Senator,  having  steadily  climbed  the  ranks  since  2004,  when  he  occupied  the  41st  spot.  In  other  words,  over  the  last  few  years,  while  most  American  families  reeled  in  the  aftermath  of  the  financial  crisis,  McConnell  got  rich  and  led  legislative  efforts  that  created  more  hardship  for  middle  class  families.    

Recent  Growth  in      

   

Source:  Center  for  Responsive  Politics,  Personal  Finance  Profile  for  Senator  McConnell        

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Cases  of  Obstruction    Minority  Leader  Mitch  McConnell  has  led  a  scorched  earth  policy  of  filibustering  nearly  every  bill  and  nominee  that  comes  before  the  Senate,  imposing  an  anti-­‐democratic  super-­‐majority  requirement  to  advance  any  legislation  or  appointment.  This  has  meant  little  to  no  work  on  a  wide  range  of  lingering  problems  from  low  job  growth  to  unwarranted  giveaways  of  tax  dollars  to  oil  companies  to  the  highest  rates  of  inequality  since  the  Gilded  Age.    

hopes  the  public  will  place  the  blame  on  President  Obama  for  the  lack  of  progress.  According  to  his  own  statements,  McConnell  one  goal  was  making  Obama  a  one-­‐term  president.  

 manage  to  help  keep  Washington  a  corporation-­‐friendly  town.    The  following  eight  cases  of  obstruction  span  several  important  policies  and  highly  competent  judicial  and  administrative  nominees.  These  cases  are  among  the  many  instances  where  McConnell  placed  the  interests  of  his  big  money  donors  ahead  of  Kentuckians  and  everyday  families.    Policy  Case  1:  Repeal  Big  Oil  Subsidies    On  March  29,  2012,  the  Senate  voted  51  in  favor  and  47  opposed  to  cut  off  debate  and  bring  a  final  vote  on  a  bill  to  remove  $24  billion  in  tax  breaks  and  giveaways  to  the  five  largest  oil  companies  in  America,  some  of  the  most  profitable  companies  in  the  history  of  the  world.    In  most  legislatures  throughout  the  world,  or  indeed  most  Senates  in  the  history  of  the  United  States,  this  majority  support  would  mean  bill  passage  and  over  the  next  10  years,  $24  billion  that  would  have  gone  to  some  of  the  largest  oil  companies  would  instead  be  split  between  reducing  the  federal  debt  and  extending  incentives  for  clean  energy  and  energy  efficiency.  Instead,  due  to   intense  focus  on  obstructionist  techniques,  this  vote  merely  added  one  more  bill  to  the  pile  of  legislation  blocked  by  the  filibuster.    McConnell  took  to  the  Senate  floor  that  day  to  talk  about  high  gasoline  prices,  but  his  stated  interest  in  getting  things  done  for  Americans  was  belied  both  by  his  record  of  obstruction  and  the  enormous  contributions  he  takes  from  the  oil  and  gas  industry.  In  fact,  oil  and  gas  interests  

career,  a  top-­‐10  donor  industry  for  him,  despite  having  almost  no  presence  in  Kentucky.    His  Big  Oil  donors  are  not  subtle.  On  March  26th,  just  three  days  earlier  and  the  very  same  day  that  Senate  debate  began  on  the  Repeal  Big  Oil  Subsidies  Act,  McConnell  pulled  in  an  astonishing  $131,500  in  contributions  from  oil-­‐related  donors  in  Midland,  Texas,  the  oil  

 It  is  unclear  from  expense  reports  whether  

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and  his  vote.    These  donors  have  influence  beyond  their  money,  as  well.  Among  the  Texas  fundraiser  attendees  were  former  Commerce  Secretary  Donald  Evans,  who  took  a  bus  tour  to  promote  

hen-­‐Labor  Secretary  Elaine  Chao;12  Miles  Boldrick,  in  whose  home  Mitt  Romney  would  later  spend  the  night;13  and  Javaid  Anwar,  who  lent  Rick  Perry  the  use  of  his  private  jet.14  In  fact,  George  W.  Bush  himself  contributed  the  legal  maximum  to  McConnell  along  with  his  wife  ($10,000  total)  just  five  days  later.  They  listed  their  address  as  Midland,  Texas  rather  than  their  homes  in  Crawford  or  Dallas,  raising  the  possibility  that  they  were  involved  in  hosting  the  event.      Of  course,  late  March  2012  was  not  the  first  or  only  time  McConnell  stood  up  for  his  financial  backers  in  the  oil  industry.  Just  months  before,  in  December,  2011,  McConnell  announced  he  would  hold  hostage  the  extension  of  the  payroll  tax  cut vital  to  the  middle  class  during  a  weak  economy unless  a  completely  unrelated  provision  approving  the  Keystone  XL  pipeline  was  included.15  The  pipeline  was  and  continues  to  be  a  major  priority  for  Big  Oil.  Incorporating  a  broad  range  of  energy-­‐related  votes,  favoring  fossil  fuel  interests  94  percent  of  the  time.16    Policy  Case  2:  Creating  American  Jobs  and  Ending  Offshoring    In  recent  years,  as  American  workers  faced  record  job  losses  and  large  companies  continued  to  move  positions  abroad,  federal  policymakers  have  attempted  to  incentivize  job  creation  in  the  U.S.  and  close  tax  loopholes  that  reward  companies  for  moving  their  operations  overseas.  Among  the  attempts  to  eliminate  such  loopholes  was  the  Creating  American  Jobs  and  Ending  Offshoring  Act  (S.3816),  a  bill  introduced  in  September  2010  that  included  ideas  Obama  announced  support  for  in  May  2009.      The  bill  would  have  1)  granted  a  two-­‐year  payroll  tax  holiday  for  every  job  brought  back  to  the  US,  2)  put  an  end  to  deductions  companies  can  take  when  moving  operations  abroad,  and  3)  eliminated  deferral  of  taxes  on  overseas  profits  for  companies  moving  overseas.  Similar  

,  debated  at  length  the  summer  of  2010.  But  these  provisions  were  stripped  as  this  Senate  bill  failed  cloture  vote  after  

                                                                                                           12   Kentucky  New  Era,  July  29,  2003.    13  Alex  Guillen Politico  Morning  Energy,  August  22,  2012.  http://www.politico.com/morningenergy/0812/morningenergy566.html  14   New  York  Times,  May  7,  2012.  Accessed  December  18,  2012:  http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/01/31/us/politics/super-­‐pac-­‐donors.html?smid=tw-­‐nytimespolitics&seid=auto    15   The  Hill,  December  16,  2011.  http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-­‐wire/e2-­‐wire/199979-­‐senate-­‐gop-­‐digs-­‐in-­‐on-­‐keystone-­‐pipeline-­‐push  16    http://www.dirtyenergymoney.com/view.php?searchvalue=mcconnell&com=&can=&zip=&search=1&type=search#view=voterecord  

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cloture  vote,  only  to  finally  pass  with  a  bare-­‐bones  extension  of  unemployment  benefits  and  without  the  measures  to  bring  jobs  back  from  overseas.  Provisions  similar  to  the  first  two  were  included  in  the  Bring  Jobs  Home  Act,  which  also  perished  by  filibuster  in  July  2012.  After  Obama  announced  his  support  for  these  ideas  in  2009,  McConnell  endorse  a  plan  that  gives  preferential  treatment  to  foreign  companies  at  the  expense  of  U.S.-­‐based  companies  and  the  52  million  people  they  employ,"17  when  in  reality  it  is  large  American  multinationals  that  receive  preferential  treatment  at  the  expense  of  small  American  businesses  and  American  workers.      Unfortunately  McConnell  helped  block  all  these  recent  efforts  to  bring  jobs  back  to  the  U.S.,  looking  out  repeatedly  for  his  large  corporate  donors  and  opponents  of  these  measures,  including  the  National  Association  of  Manufacturers  and  the  U.S.  Chamber  of  Commerce.18  Companies  with  key  stakes  in  these  policies  understand  how  important  it  is  to  invest  in  

.  Taking  the  companies  that  lobbied  on  S.3816  in  2010  as  a  sample,  we  find  that  McConnell  raised  close  to  $1  million  from  executives  and  PACs  associated  with  37  of  the  companies  that  reported  lobbying  on  the  bill  in  at  least  two  of  their  filings.19  The  largest  donor  in  this  group  is  General  Electric  (giving  at  least  $174,812  to  McConnell  over  the  years),  followed  by  Microsoft  Corp  ($100,750),  Koch  Industries  ($85,450),  and  Exxon  Mobil  ($74,300).  (See  Appendix  for  full  list.)    These  37  companies  have  collectively  stashed  $445  billion  in  untaxed  profits  overseas  instead  of  using  those  funds  to  create  jobs  in  America.  GE,  Microsoft  and  Exxon  Mobil  also  stand  out  in  this  regard,  with  offshore  profits  of  $102  billion,  $61  billion,  and  $74  billion  respectively.  Other  McConnell  donors  that  lobbied  on  the  issue  and  sit  on  large  overseas  stores  of  cash  include  Johnson  &  Johnson  ($42  billion  abroad),  IBM  ($38  billion  abroad),  and  Hewlett-­‐Packard  ($29  billion  abroad).      Policy  Case  3:  DISCLOSE    

groups  not  required  to  disclose  their  donors,  a  practice  allowed  by  Supreme  Court  decisions  like  Citizens  United  and  the  vagaries  of  U.S.  tax  law.  Once,  Mitch  McConnell  voiced  opinions  in  support  of  the  goal  of  disclosure,  saying  spending  should  b 20  But  that  was  in  1997.    

                                                                                                           17   Obama  Unveils  Plan  to  Close  Tax  Loopholeshttp://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/05/04/obama-­‐unveils-­‐plan-­‐close-­‐tax-­‐loopholes/  18   Obama  Unveils  Plan  to  Close  Tax  Loopholeshttp://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/05/04/obama-­‐unveils-­‐plan-­‐close-­‐tax-­‐loopholes/  19  Lobbying  information  is  based  on  an  analysis  of  data  provided  by  the  Center  for  Responsive  Politics.  20   Lexington  Herald-­‐Leader,  August  1,  2010.  http://www.kentucky.com/2010/08/01/1372068/mcconnells-­‐hypocrisy-­‐on-­‐campaign.html  

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Times  have  changed  and  the  big  money  problem  has  worsened  in  American  politics.  Regardless,  McConnell  seems  less  concerned  nowadays  with  voters  having  information  to  judge  undue  

-­‐21  

 Accounts  from  the  Senate  make  it  clear  that  the  blockage  of  this  formerly-­‐bipartisan  idea  by  filibusters   22  McConnell  put  on  senators  in  his  caucus  to  oppose  the  legislation,  even  over  considerable  objections  in  private.  The  bill  fell  just  one  vote  short  of  the  60-­‐vote  threshold  in  2010  and  failed  on  another  party-­‐line  vote  in  2012.      What  could  account  for  the  difference  between  his  previous  support  for  transparency  and  his  now  vehement  opposition  to  the  DISCLOSE  Act?  McConnell  would  have  you  believe  that  he  is  simply  maintaining  consistent  support  of  the  First  Amendment  against  attempts  to  impinge  on  the  freedom  of  speech.  The  facts  paint  a  different  picture.    

money  spent  on  their  behalf,  a  5-­‐to-­‐1  advantage  in  the  2012  elections.  So-­‐called   social  welfare  organizations  (or  501(c)4 s)  and  trade  associations  (or  501(c)6 s)  are  not  required  to  register  as  political  committees  with  the  Federal  Election  Commission  or  disclose  their  donors.  These  dark  money  groups  spent  $245.4  million  benefitting  Republicans,  dwarfing  the  $49.6  million  similar  groups  spent  to  help  Democrats.23    McConnell  is  the  same  person  who  said  the  top  three  priorities  for  building  a  political  party  are  

24  and  opportunistically  sought  to  ban  contributions  by  political  action  committees  (PACs)  in  1996,  when  PACs  gave  more  money  to  Democrats  than  Republicans,  without  thinking  this  might  violate  the  First  Amendment.25  Even  a  top  Republican  aide  said  in  

-­‐Feingold  campaign  finance  reform  law  100  percent  prencompassed  the  practical the   26    

                                                                                                           21   -­‐ USA  Today,  July  5,  2012.  http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/story/2012-­‐07-­‐05/Disclose-­‐Act-­‐Mitch-­‐McConnell/56046300/1  22   Disclose  Act  Vote  Railroaded  By  Mitch  McConnell,  Senate  Dems  Claim Huffington  Post,  July  18,  2012.  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/18/disclose-­‐act_n_1683573.html  23   -­‐ Sunlight  Foundation  Reporting  Group.  Accessed  December  17,  2012:  http://reporting.sunlightfoundation.com/outside-­‐spending/noncommittees/  24   Lexington  Herald-­‐Leader,  October  15,  2006.  http://wincoast.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-­‐43005.html  25   PBS  News  Hour,  June  24,  1996.  26   McConnell  gets  ready  to  step  into  Frist's  shoes:  Loyal,  understated  whip  awaits  his  turn  at  the  summit The  Hill,  Oct.  25,  2005.  

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Beyond  the  partisan  advantage  dark  money  grants  Republicans s  chances  of  becoming  majority  leader he  also  has  personal  ties  to  some  of  the  biggest  dark  money  groups.    The  largest  dark  money  group,  Crossroads  GPS  (Grassroots  Policy  Strategies),  is  run  by  

 politics,  he  learned  from  McConnell,  and  it  shows.  First  as  a  Senate  staffer  for  McConnell,  then  on  his  own  helping  the  U.S.  Chamber  of  Commerce  transition  to  becoming  a  big  political  spender  and  as  head  of  Crossroads  GPS  and  American  Crossroads reer  has  involved  raising  enormous  sums  of  money  for  political  uses.      

disclosed  spending,  and  every  penny  either  attacking  Democrats  or  supporting  Republicans.  McConn  pressuring  members  of  his  caucus  who  privately  support  transparency  to  maintain  party-­‐line  opposition  to  legislation  like  the  DISCLOSE  Act  that  would  require  Crossroads  to  disclose  its  donors.    With  the  incredible  effort  McConnell  has  put  into  using  every  obstruction  measure  possible  to  block  the  DISCLOSE  Act,  the  failure  of  Congress  to  prevent  massive  amounts  of  secret  money  being  spent  in  the  2012  election  can  be  almost  ent    Policy  Case  4:  Employee  Free  Choice    Though  growing  inequality  is  a  moral  and  economic  concern  in  America,  Congress  has  failed  to  reinstall  policies  that  could  help  reverse  this  trend  by  strengthening  the  rights  and  voices  of  workers.27  Academics  and  policy-­‐makers  have  argued  that  restoring  balance  to  the  union  election  process  through  the  Employee  Free  Choice  Act  (EFCA)  would  help  rebuild  the  middle  class.  Unfortunately,  due  in  part  to  the  powerful  influence  of  large  corporate  campaign  donors,  McConnell  and  the  Senate  effectively  blocked  EFCA  in  2007  and  2009  through  the  use  and  threat  of  the  filibuster.    In  March  2007,  the  House  passed  EFCA28  before  it  died  by  cloture  vote  in  the  Senate  that  June.29  In  March  2009,  Senator  Ted  Kennedy  introduced  the  bill  again30  and  fellow  Senators  spent  months  trying  to  amass  and  maintain  60  votes.  In  the  end,  the  60-­‐vote  threshold  was  too  high  a  barrier  to  overcome.    

                                                                                                           27   New  York  Times,  October  19,  2012.  http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/10/18/shrink-­‐inequality-­‐to-­‐grow-­‐the-­‐economy/revive-­‐labors-­‐power  28  Roll  Call  Vote  118,  H.R.  800,  May  7,  2007.  http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2007/roll118.xml  29  Roll  Call  Vote  227,  H.R.  800,  June  26,  2007.  http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=110&session=1&vote=00227  30   Employee  Free  Choice  Act  of  2009http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/111/s560  

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Big  corporate  interests  kept  the  heat  on  throughout  that  time  by  spending  millions  on  lobbying  and  elections.  More  than  300  companies  and  trade  groups  lobbied  on  the  bill  in  just  2009,  spending  upwards  of  $563  million  on  lobbying.31  The  U.S.  Chamber  of  Commerce,  whose  vice  

32  spent  $123  million  lobbying  on  this  issue.  The  Chamber  also  spent  at  least  $17  million  in  the  2008  election,  mostly  through  outside  spending.    These  interests  had  a  friend  in  McConnell,  who  warned  the  bill   fundamentally  harm  America 33  Over  his  career,  McConnell  has  taken  at  least  $3.4  million  in  campaign  contributions  from  150  of  the  companies  and  trade  groups  that  lobbied  against  the  Senate  version  of  the  bill  (S.560).34  which  have  given  at  least  $55,000  to  his  campaign  committee  and  leadership  PAC  over  the  years,  while  the  company  lobbied  heavily  on  the  bill,  spending  $935,000  in  2009.  In  October  2008,  during  the  lead-­‐up  to  this  policy  battle,  Home  Depot  co-­‐founder  Bernie  Marcus,  who  has  personally  donated  to  McConnell,  warned  that  EFCA  would  mean  "the  demise  of  a  civilization."  He  went  on  to  say  that  "[i]f  a  retailer  has  not  gotten  involved  with  this,  if  he  has  not  spent  money  on  this  election,  if  he  has  not  sent  money  to  Norm  Coleman  and  these  other  guys,"  then  such  retailers  "should  be  shot;  should  be  thrown  out  of  their  goddamn  jobs."35    

ch  has  given  McConnell  at  least  $32,650,  and  Wal-­‐Mart,  which  has  given  $53,800  and  lobbied  heavily  on  the  bill.  Both  companies  have  faced  recent  worker  and  community  protests  for  better  pay  and  worker  rights.  The  Associated  Builders  and  Contractors,  which  has  given  McConnell  $74,250,  sent  a  letter  in  

36  McConnell  was  sympathetic  to  these  concerns  and  those  of  the  overwhelming  number  of  his  campaign  donors  who  lobbied  on  this  bill.  (See  Appendix  for  full  list.)        

                                                                                                           31  This  amount  includes  lobbying  expenditures  for  other  issues  and  bills,  since  lobbying  expenditure  reports  do  not  allow  for  disaggregation  of  expenditures  by  issue  or  bill.  Organizations  that  specified  the  bill  in  at  least  two  filings  in  2009  were  included  in  this  count.  32  Steven   After  Push  for  Obama,  Unions  Seek  New  Rules New  York  Times,  November  8,  2008.  http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/09/us/politics/09labor.html?pagewanted=all  33  ThinkProgress,  January  23,  2009.  http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2009/01/23/35208/mcconnell-­‐efca/  34  Organizations  that  specified  the  bill  in  at  least  two  filings  in  2009  were  included  in  this  count.  35   It's  Time  to  Give  Voters  the  Liberalism  They  Want,  Wall  Street  Journal,  November  19,  2008.  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122705706314639537.html  36   Associated  Builders  and  Contractors  battle  Employee  Free  Choice  Act Houston  Business  Journal,  April  21,  2009.  http://blog.mlive.com/westsidestory/2009/04/associated_builders_and_contra.html  

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Policy  Case  5:  Helping  Families  Save  Their  Homes    In  2009,  one  in  every  four  homeowners  was  underwater,  owing  more  on  their  mortgages  than  their  homes  were  worth37  and  more  than  a  million  families  nationwide  had  lost  their  homes  the  previous  year.38  In  Kentucky,  the  foreclosure  rate  remained  higher  than  it  had  been  in  decades.39      In  April  2009,  as  the  foreclosure  crisis  escalated,  the  House  passed  the  Helping  Families  Save  Their  Homes  Act,40  which  included  a  key  provision  to  create  flexibility  for  bankruptcy  judges  to  modify  mortgages  for  homeowners  facing  foreclosure,  the  so-­‐called    provision.  In  the  Senate,  despite  his  efforts,  Senator  Durbin  was  not  able  to  garner  60  votes  to  keep  the  cramdown  provision  in  their  version  of  the  bill,41  after  months  of  negotiating  and  working  with  banks  and  Republicans.  It  was  during  this  process  that  Durbin  noted,  with  regard  to  Capitol  Hill,  that   ly   42    With  Wall  Street  interests    at  least  $8.7  million,  it  is  fair  to  ask  whether  Wall  Street  owns  Senator  McConnell  in  particular.  Some  of  McConnell  top  donors  from  the  finance  sector  fought  against    provision.  The  American  Bankers  Association,  which  has  given  at  least  $85,000  to  McConnell  over  the  years,  left  the  negotiating  table  Durbin  convened43  and  spent  $8.5  million  lobbying  against  the  bill  in  2009.44  Other  opponents  included  the  Mortgage  Bankers  Association  ($37,500  in  campaign  contributions  to  McConnell)  and  the  Financial  Services  Roundtable  ($24,000).    

including  billions  in  outstanding  unsecured  debt  on  underwater  homes,  loans  that  could  be  written  off  completely  by  mortgage  adjustments.45    46  is  also  

$134,475  over  his  career.    

                                                                                                           37   One  in  Four  Borrowers  Is  Underwater Wall  Street  Journal,  November  24,  2009.  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125903489722661849.html  38   Over  one  Million  People  Lost  their  Home  in  2008 Bloomberg  BusinessWeek,  January  14,  2009.  http://www.businessweek.com/the_thread/hotproperty/archives/2009/01/over_one_millio.html  39  Emily  Spurlock,  et  al.  Housing  Foreclosures  in  Kentucky,  Kentucky  Legislative  Research  Commission,  July  9,  2009,  pg.  18.  http://www.lrc.ky.gov/lrcpubs/rr365.pdf  40  Roll  Call  Vote  104,  H.R.  1106,  March  5,  2009.  http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2009/roll104.xml  41  Roll  Call  Vote  174,  S.Amdt.  2014  to  S.  896,  April  30,  2009.  http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=111&session=1&vote=00174  42   Dick  Durbi Huffington  Post,  May  30,  2009.  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/29/dick-­‐durbin-­‐banks-­‐frankly_n_193010.html  43   Bankruptcy  Bill  Watered  Down,  Still  Fiercely  Opposed  By  Banks Huffington  Post,  May  28,  2009.  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/27/bankruptcy-­‐bill-­‐watered-­‐d_n_191998.html  44  This  amount  includes  lobbying  expenditures  for  other  issues  and  bills,  since  lobbying  expenditure  reports  do  not  allow  for  disaggregation  of  expenditures  by  issue  or  bill.  45   Why  a  Mortgage  Cramdown  Bill  Is  Still  the  Best  Bet  to  Save  the  Economy The  Nation,  October  20,  2011.  http://www.thenation.com/article/164096/why-­‐mortgage-­‐cramdown-­‐bill-­‐still-­‐best-­‐bet-­‐save-­‐economy#  46  http://www.ffiec.gov/nicpubweb/nicweb/Top50Form.aspx  

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Nominee  Case  1:  Jack  McConnell    Sen.  McConnell  has  blocked  or  slowed  more  than  just  legislation  in  the  interest  of  his  deep-­‐pocketed  donors.  He  also  has  taken  the  filibustering  of  judicial  and  administrative  nominees  to  new  heights.    

McConnell  (no  relation)  was  nominated  to  the  District  Court  of  Rhode  Island  on  March  10,  2010,  business  and  insurance  interests  mobilized  to  block  the  former  trial  lawyer  from  appearing  on  the  bench.  Naturally,  Mitch  McConnell  was  there  to  back  up  his  allies  and  donors  with  the  very  rare  step  of  filibustering  a  district  court  nominee,  the  lowest  level  subject  to  Senate  confirmation.    The  U.S.  Chamber  of  Commerce  in  many  ways  led  the  charge  against  Jack  McConnell,  evidently  because  of  his  history  representing  plaintiffs  against  big  businesses  for  lawsuits  around  asbestos,  tobacco,  and  lead  paint.  Rhode  Island  reporters  noted  the  connection  behind  the  

largest  business  trade  group  and  the  delays  by  Senate  Republicans,  despite  the  nominee   Jack  nomination  has  been  stalled  for  more  than  a  year  for  no  apparent  reason  other  than  that  the  

businesses 47    

 doubt  the    

48    The  business  lobby  was  not  opposing  Jack  McConnell  simply  for  ideological  reasons.  Many  of  

lawsuits  argued  by  Jack  McConnell  or  his  firm.  Attorney  in  which  he  represented  the  state  of  Rhode  Island,  resulted  in  $1.7  to  $3.4  billion  in  costs  for  Sherwin-­‐Williams,  NL  Industries,  and  Millenium  Holdings  to  clean  up  240,000  Rhode  Island  homes  contaminated  by  their  lead  paint.  its  parent  company  have  given  $43,755  to  McConnell  over  the  years.      Similarly,  Georgia-­‐Pacific  has  been  the  target  of  several  asbestos  lawsuits  argued  by  Motley  

The  billionaire  Koch  brothers  who  own  Georgia-­‐parent  company,  Koch  Industries,  have  immense  levels  of  political  influence,  funding  a  vast  network  of  dark  money  groups  like  Americans  for  Prosperity  that  has  collectively  been  termed  

                                                                                                           47   NPR,  May  3,  2011.  http://wrnipoliticsblog.wordpress.com/2011/05/03/isnt-­‐it-­‐time-­‐jack-­‐mcconnell-­‐gets-­‐a-­‐senate-­‐vote/  48    

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och  World, 49  and  the  PAC  and  employees  of  Georgia-­‐Pacific  and  Koch  Industries  poured  over    

 Another  interested  party  with  Sen.   ree  different  insurance  industry  trade  groups  all  signed  on  to  a  letter  by  the  U.S.  Chamber  of  Commerce  opposing  Jack  M  The  insurance  industry  has  given  Mitch  McConnell  $1.7  million,  but  this  amount  still  pales  in  comparison  to  the  sums  at  stake  for  insurers  in  class  action  lawsuits  like  the  ones  Jack  McConnell  argued.    On  May  4,  2011  Jac finally  moved  forward  via  a  cloture  vote  of  63-­‐33  and  then  was  confirmed  on  a  narrower  50-­‐44  basis,  reflecting  the  reluctance  of  some  rank-­‐and-­‐file  Republicans  to  carry  out   court  nominees.  Still,  a  similar  judicial  nominee,  Louis  Butler,  was  sunk  due  to  analogous  business  opposition  stemming  from  his  previous  rulings  on  lead  paint  and  medical  malpractice  cases.50    Nominee  Case  2:  CFPB  Director    On  July  21,  2010,  President  Obama  signed  into  law  the  Dodd-­‐Frank  Act,  the  most  sweeping  reform  of  Wall  Street  since  the  Great  Depression.  This  came  after  months  of  attempts  by  Republicans  and  Wall  Street  lobbyists  to  water  down  the  bill  and  an  astounding  10  filibusters  on  the  bill  in  the  Senate.    Faced  with  an  Act  of  Congress  he  could  not  find  the  votes  to  repeal,  McConnell  and  the  Republican  minority  in  the  Senate  sought  to  effectively  nullify  Dodd-­‐Frank  through  additional  obstruction.  A  primary  tactic  was  the  decision  to  filibuster  any  nominee  to  become  director  of  the  Consumer  Financial  Protection  Bureau  (CFPB),  regardless  of  his  or  her  qualifications.  McConnell  led  44  Republican  senators  to  write  a  letter  saying  that  no  nominee  would  get  

51    Since  the  CFPB  was  designed  to  protect  Americans  against  the  abuses  of  big  banks  and  predatory  lenders,  debilitating  the  bureau  has  been  and  remains  a  huge  priority  for  the  financial  sector  and  McConnell.  Wall  Street,  incidentally,  is  the  single  biggest  sector  contributing  money  to  McConnell,  who  has  taken  at  least  $8.7  million  from  financial  interests  over  his  career.      Even  after  Obama  passed  over  Elizabeth  Warren,  a  favorite  of  liberal  groups  who  was  strongly  opposed  by  conservatives,  and  nominated  Ohio  Attorney  General  Richard  Cordray  to  be  

                                                                                                           49   Politico,  June  15,  2012.  http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0612/77453.html  50   Milwaukee  Journal  Sentinel,  December  20,  2010.  http://www.jsonline.com/news/usandworld/112207769.html  51   Office  of  Sen.  Richard  Shelby,  May  5,  2011.  http://shelby.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2011/5/44-­‐u-­‐s-­‐sens-­‐to-­‐obama-­‐no-­‐accountability-­‐no-­‐confirmation  

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director  of  the  CFPB  in  July  2011,  Republican  obstruction  did  not  let  up.  Rather  than  the  bureau  beginning  in  earnest  its  work  of  protecting  consumers  on  the  scheduled  launch  date  of  July  21,  2011,  the  CFPB  sat  through  months  of  delays  in  the  Senate  waiting  for  a  director,  culminating  in  a  cloture  vote  for  Cordray  on  December  8,  2011.  In  the  end,  the  44  letter  signers  and  one  additional  Republican  voted  against  cloture,  using  the  filibuster  to  block  an  up-­‐or-­‐down  vote  on  

   McConnell  and  the  rest  of  his  caucus  even  tried  to  use  a  technicality  to  prevent  Obama  from  using  his  recess  appointment  powers  by  holding  pro  forma  sessions essentially  a  few  senators  calling  the  Senate  into  session  without  conducting  any  significant  business throughout  the  traditional  winter  recess.  Obama  called  their  bluff  by  installing  Cordray  on  January  4th,  prompting  McConnell  to  claim  that   arrogantly  circumvented  the  American  people  by  'recess'  appointing  Richard  Cordray. 52    This  came  from  the  same  man  who  had  spent  the  past  18  months  trying  to  subvert  the  will  of  the  American  people,  through  their  elected  representatives,  by  nullifying  a  legitimate  Act  of  Congress  he  lacked  the  votes  to  repeal.    Once  Cordray  and  the  CFPB  began  to  conduct  business,  it  was  clear  why  McConnell  and  his  donors  in  the  banking  industry  were  so  keen  to  impede  their  work.  The  first  enforcement  action  the  new  agency  took  was  a  $210  million  settlement  with  Capital  Onelargest  donor  ($121,500) including  $150  million  in  refunds  to  two  million  American  consumers  on  whom  Capital  One  had  used  deceptive  marketing  practices.   probably  no  coincidence  that  over  half  of  the  money  McConnell  received  from  Capital  One,  $61,500,  came  in  the  year  and  a  half  between  the  passage  of  Dodd-­‐Frank  and  the  eventual  installment  of  Richard  Cordray.    Similarly,  the  next  action  coming  out  of  the  CFPB  was  a  $112.5  million  settlement  with  American  Express,  which  has  given  $69,950  to  McConnell.  Just  like  for  Capital  One,  the  return  

in  saving  American  Express  from  paying  out  millions  to  customers  it  had  wronged.    After  the  passage  of  Dodd-­‐Frank,  McConnell  was  quoted  as  saying  of  regulatory  agencies  that  anything  we  can  do  to  slow  down,  deter  or  impede  their  ability  to  engage  in  this  oppressive  overregulation,  which  is  freezing  up  our  economy,  would  be  good  for  our  country 53  Millions  of  

for  mistreatment  by  big  banks  and  credit  companies      

   

                                                                                                           52  Office  of  Sen.  Mitch  McConnell,  January  4,  2012.    53  Peter  Schroe McConnell:  Cutting  funds  for  Dodd-­‐Frank  regulatory  agencies  good  for  economy The  Hill,  June  23,  2011.  http://thehill.com/blogs/on-­‐the-­‐money/banking-­‐financial-­‐institutions/168057-­‐mcconnell-­‐cutting-­‐funds-­‐for-­‐dodd-­‐frank-­‐agencies-­‐good-­‐for-­‐nation  

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Nominee  Case  3:  Donald  Berwick    In  April  2010,  President  Obama  nominated  Donald  Berwick  to  head  the  Centers  for  Medicare  and  Medicaid.  A  pediatrician  who  worked  to  improve  the  management  of  health  care  systems,  

54  Foreseeing  a  protracted  Senate  confirmation  process  and  needing  an  administrator  to  help  implement  the  new  health  care  law,  Obama  installed  him  through  a  recess  appointment  in  July  2010,  much  to  the  ire  of  Senate  Republicans.  Senator  McConnell  called  the  appointment  

55    Since  Berwick  could  only  serve  the  recess  appointment  through  the  end  of  2011,  Obama  re-­‐nominated  him  in  January  2011.  Shortly  afterward,  Senate  Republicans  united  in  expressing  

56  and  many  vowed  to  block  his  confirmation.57  Seeing  the  uphill  battle,  Berwick  resigned  at  the  end  of  his  term,  a  fate  that  even  opponents  of  Obama-­‐

Washington.58    Berwickremarks  to  the  British  National  Health  Service You  could  have  protected  the  wealthy  and  the  well,  instead  of  recognizing  that  sick  people  tend  to  be  poorer  and  that  poor  people  tend  to  be  sicker,  and  that  any  health  care  funding  plan  that  is  just,  equitable,  civilized,  and  humane  must must redistribute  wealth  from  the  richer  among  us  to  the  poorer  and  less  fortunate.  Excellent  healthcare  is  by  definition  redistribution. 59    As  many  Americans  with  private  health  insurance  know  from  experience,  tending  to  the  sick  and  the  poor  is  not  a  priority  for  health  insurance  companies,  where  the  drive  for  profit  leads  to  lower  quality  care  while  executives  spend  millions  on  politicians  to  fight  health  care  reform.  Given  his  leadership  role,  Senator  Mitch  McConnell  has  been  a  favorite  for  this  interest  group,  taking  $2.2  million  from  insurance  and  HMO  companies  over  the  years,  including  $158,877  

$115,700  from  Blue  Cross  Blue  Shield  and  Wellpoint,  and  $46,900  from  UnitedHealth  Group.    

                                                                                                           54   Obama  to  Bypass  Senate  to  Name  Health  Official New  York  Times,  July  6,  2010.  http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/07/health/policy/07recess.html  55   Senator  Mitch  McConnell:  Americans  Deserve  to  Hear  How  Donald  Berwick  Would  Ration  Medicare Life  News,  July  12,  2010.  http://209.157.64.201/focus/f-­‐news/2551328/posts  56   Hatch,  Enzi  Spearhead  Letter  to  President  Urging  Him  to  Withdraw  Berwick  Nomination  to  Head  CMSRanking  Member  of  Senate  Committee  on  Finance  (Orrin  Hatch),  March  3,  2011.  http://www.finance.senate.gov/newsroom/ranking/release/?id=862493f5-­‐d9d7-­‐418e-­‐b47a-­‐17b23142c0b6  57   New  York  Times,  November  23,  2011.  http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/24/health/policy/dr-­‐donald-­‐m-­‐berwick-­‐resigns-­‐as-­‐head-­‐of-­‐medicare-­‐and-­‐medicaid.html  58   Donald  Berwick's  Resignation  And  The  Triumph  Of  The  Bland Forbes,  November  23,  2011.  http://www.forbes.com/sites/davidwhelan/2011/11/23/donald-­‐berwicks-­‐resignation-­‐and-­‐the-­‐triumph-­‐of-­‐the-­‐bland/  59   Transcript:  Dr.  Donald  Berwick's  Speech  To  The  British  National  Health  Servicehttp://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/Stories/2010/July/07/berwick-­‐british-­‐NHS-­‐speech-­‐transcript.aspx  

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Conclusion    Senator  Mitch  McConnell  has  led  a  campaign  of  obstruction  that  has  debilitated  the  Senate  and  Congress  as  a  whole.  Time  and  again,  he  has  abused  Senate  rules  to  block  majority-­‐supported  legislation  opposed  by  his  deep-­‐pocketed  corporate  donors even  when  it  hurts  everyday  Kentuckians  and  Americans.      If  the  Senate  is  to  return  to  its  function  of  actually  serving  the  constituents  that  elected  officials  are  charged  with  representing,  Senate  rules  must  be  reformed  such  that  a  small  group  of  senators  cannot  exploit  the  filibuster,  secret  holds,  and  other  obstructionist  techniques  to  block  the  will  of  the  American  people.    In  addition,  Fair  Elections  reform  is  vitally  needed  so  that  the  voices  of  everyday  people  are  heard  in  Washington  over  the  din  of  lobbyists  and  high-­‐priced  fundraisers.  Campaign  finance  reform  that  enables  politicians  to  run  a  campaign  relying  on  small  contributions  from  their  actual  constituents,  amplified  with  a  public  match,  will  once  again  make  legislating  about  doing  

ry  Americans,  not  just  pleasing  a  tiny  sliver  of  wealthy  donors.        

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Methodology    This  report  was  prepared  using  publicly  available  data  from  government,  nonprofit,  and  media  

ibutions  he  has  received.  Contribution  information  is  based  on  our  analysis  of  data  reported  to  the  Federal  Election  Commission,  coded  by  the  Center  for  Responsive  Politics,  and  ultimately  accessed  through  bulk  downloads  provided  by  the  Sunlight  Foundation.  The  available  information  

leadership  PAC,  Bluegrass  Committee.  The  totals  reflect  a  partial  2012  cycle,  as  bulk  data  were  available  through  June  30,  2012  at  the  data  may  also  be  revised  over  time.      Records  of  filibusters  were  prepared  through  a  combination  of  data  from  the  U.S.  Senate  on  attempts  to  end  filibusters  through  motions  and  votes  to  invoke  cloture,  as  well  as  publicly  

Republican  caucus  and  his  public  statements  indicate  he  has  played  an  enormous  role  in  the  uptick  in  obstruction,  even  if  detailed  information  on  the  role  specific  senators  play  in  filibusters  is  not  publicly  available.      Information  on  lobbying  and  lobbying  expenditures  by  various  organizations  is  based  on  analysis  of  data  provided  by  the  Center  for  Responsive  Politics,  covering  quarterly  disclosure  filings  of  lobbying  entities  with  the  Senate  Office  of  Public  Records.            

About  Public  Campaign  Action  Fund    Public  Campaign  Action  Fund  is  a  national  nonpartisan  organization  dedicated  to  passing  

ws.  The  organization  works  to  hold  elected  official  accountable  for  opposing  reform  and  for  the  special  favors  they  do  for  contributors.  Learn  more  at  www.campaignmoney.org.      For  more  information,  contact  Kurt  Walters  ([email protected]).      

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APPENDIX  1    Total  Contributions  to  McConnell  from  Organizations  that  Lobbied  on  S.381660    

Client  Total  to  McConnell  

Since  1989  Unrepatriated  Offshore  Profits,  2011  (millions)  

Lobbying  Reports  on  Issue/Bill  

General  Electric   $174,812   $102,000   4  Microsoft  Corp   $100,750   $60,800   4  Koch  Industries   $85,450   N/A   2  Exxon  Mobil   $74,300   $47,000   4  American  Express   $69,950   $7,700   4  International  Paper   $54,500   $4,500   2  National  Mining  Assn   $40,000   N/A   5  AstraZeneca  Pharmaceuticals   $33,700   N/A   2  PhRMA   $32,200   N/A   2  Boston  Scientific  Corp   $30,900   $10,346   2  Managed  Funds  Assn   $30,000   N/A   2  Hewlett-­‐Packard   $24,750   $29,100   3  Arch  Coal   $23,000   N/A   2  Google  Inc   $19,000   $24,800   2  Johnson  &  Johnson   $17,750   $41,600   2  Anadarko  Petroleum   $17,300   N/A   3  Bristol-­‐Myers  Squibb   $17,250   $18,500   2  Medtronic  Inc   $17,000   $17,977   4  Deere  &  Co   $13,000   $2,597   2  DuPont  Co   $12,500   $13,350   5  Barclays   $12,000   N/A   2  American  Petroleum  Institute   $10,800   N/A   4  3M  Co   $10,750   $7,100   2  US  Chamber  of  Commerce   $10,548   N/A   2  National  Assn  of  Manufacturers   $10,100   N/A   2  PPG  Industries   $8,500   $2,920   2  Retail  Industry  Leaders  Assn   $7,500   N/A   2  Shell  Oil   $7,100   N/A   2  Emerson   $3,500   N/A   2  IBM  Corp   $2,450   $37,900   5  NCR  Corp   $2,000   $1,200   4  Texas  Instruments   $2,000   $4,120   3  Advanced  Micro  Devices   $1,000   $414   2  Ameriprise  Financial   $1,000   $89   2  CA  Inc   $1,000   $1,999   3  Convergys  Corp   $1,000   N/A   2  Technology  Assn  of  America   $1,000   N/A   2  TOTAL   $980,360   $445,014    

                                                                                                           60  Organizations  that  reported  lobbying  on  S.3816  in  at  least  2  lobbying  reports  in  2010  were  included.  

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 APPENDIX  2    Total  Contributions  to  McConnell  from  Organizations  that  Lobbied  on  S.56061    Client   Total  to  McConnell  Since  1989   Lobbying  Reports  on  Issue/Bill  

Kindred  Healthcare   $202,450   4  

General  Electric   $174,812   7  

Ashland  Inc   $144,576   9  

United  Parcel  Service   $104,321   2  

Peabody  Energy   $99,900   6  

Associated  Builders  &  Contractors   $74,250   7  

National  Restaurant  Assn   $72,218   9  

National  Assn  of  Home  Builders   $70,500   5  

Verizon  Communications   $65,250   8  

Verizon  Communications   $65,250   5  

Marathon  Oil   $64,600   4  

National  Auto  Dealers  Assn   $62,000   4  

Wine  &  Spirits  Wholesalers  of  Amer.   $57,000   4  

Home  Depot   $55,500   16  

Wal-­‐Mart  Stores   $53,800   17  

Duke  Energy   $52,850   5  

American  Trucking  Assns   $50,000   4  

American  Hospital  Assn   $46,000   17  

Comcast  Corp   $45,500   10  

YUM!  Brands   $44,450   7  

Honeywell  International   $43,500   4  

Food  Marketing  Institute   $43,464   5  

Federation  of  American  Hospitals   $41,500   8  

Blackstone  Group   $41,300   2  

National  Multi  Housing  Council   $41,250   4  

National  Mining  Assn   $40,000   6  

Devon  Energy   $39,700   2  

MetLife  Inc   $39,500   3  

International  Dairy  Foods  Assn   $37,500   3  

Natl  Assn  REITs   $37,000   3  

Darden  Restaurants   $36,000   3  

Intl.  Council  of  Shopping  Cntrs   $35,000   10  

Associated  General  Contractors   $35,000   4  

Lockheed  Martin   $33,250   7  

McDonald's  Corp   $32,650   5  

Boston  Scientific  Corp   $30,900   4  

American  Health  Care  Assn   $30,250   9  

                                                                                                           61  Organizations  that  reported  lobbying  on  S.560  in  at  least  2  lobbying  reports  in  2009  were  included.  

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NFIB   $29,040   3  

FedEx  Corp   $28,800   5  

American  Commercial  Lines   $27,000   4  

American  Meat  Institute   $26,000   4  

Hewlett-­‐Packard   $24,750   4  

Occidental  Petroleum   $24,500   6  

Real  Estate  Roundtable   $23,500   4  

International  Franchise  Assn   $23,100   8  

Arch  Coal   $23,000   10  

Ingram  Industries   $23,000   4  

American  Bakers  Assn   $20,875   7  

Limited  Brands   $20,600   4  

Nat.  Assn  of  Wholesaler-­‐Distributors   $20,375   5  

Carlyle  Group   $19,950   4  

American  Beverage  Assn   $19,500   4  

Tyson  Foods   $19,400   6  

CR  Bard  Inc   $18,795   2  

Intel  Corp   $18,300   2  

American  Hotel  &  Lodging  Assn   $17,000   6  

Target  Corp   $16,500   9  

Marriott  International   $15,500   8  

Dean  Foods   $15,500   8  

CVS/Caremark  Corp   $15,500   6  

National  Stone,  Sand  &  Gravel  Assn   $15,500   4  

Mutual  of  Omaha   $15,000   2  

Republican  Jewish  Coalition   $14,600   2  

National  Ready  Mixed  Concrete  Assn   $14,500   4  

American  Gaming  Assn   $14,400   2  

Assn  of  KFC  Franchisees   $14,000   4  

American  Rental  Assn   $13,501   8  

Property  Casualty  Insurers  Assn   $13,500   11  

Williams  Companies   $13,500   7  

Harris  Corp   $13,500   4  

Caterpillar  Inc   $13,500   2  

Deere  &  Co   $13,000   9  

Amway/Alticor  Inc   $12,700   4  

National  Roofing  Contractors  Assn   $12,500   7  

DuPont  Co   $12,500   5  

Intl  Foodservice  Distributors  Assn   $12,500   4  

Monsanto  Co   $12,250   11  

Livingston  Group   $12,250   5  

Halliburton  Co   $12,000   9  

Goodrich  Corp   $12,000   4  

Allstate  Insurance   $11,750   3  

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3M  Co   $10,750   4  

US  Chamber  of  Commerce   $10,548   13  

ConAgra  Foods   $10,500   4  

National  Assn  of  Manufacturers   $10,100   4  

Petroleum  Marketers  Assn   $10,000   4  

Associated  Equipment  Distributors   $10,000   3  

St  Jude  Medical   $10,000   2  

Walgreen  Co   $9,750   3  

HealthSouth  Corp   $9,500   4  

Mississippi  Band  of  Choctaw  Indians   $9,000   4  

Illinois  Tool  Works   $9,000   4  

Brinker  International   $9,000   4  

Assisted  Living  Fed.  of  America   $9,000   2  

Procter  &  Gamble   $8,500   6  

PPG  Industries   $8,500   4  

Business  Roundtable   $8,500   4  

American  Frozen  Food  Institute   $8,000   9  

National  Chicken  Council   $8,000   8  

National  Retail  Federation   $8,000   6  

Retail  Industry  Leaders  Assn   $7,500   7  

National  Assn  of  Chain  Drug  Stores   $7,000   4  

MeadWestvaco  Corp   $7,000   4  

Dairy  Farmers  of  America   $7,000   4  

Cummins  Inc   $7,000   4  

Lowe's  Companies   $6,500   3  

Best  Buy   $6,000   9  

Rockwell  International   $6,000   5  

Tenet  Healthcare   $6,000   4  

JC  Penney   $5,250   4  

Manufactured  Housing  Institute   $5,200   5  

National  Utility  Contractors  Assn   $5,000   6  

Tyco  Electronics   $5,000   5  

National  Council  of  Farmer  Co-­‐Ops   $5,000   5  

Servicemaster  Co   $5,000   4  

Babcock  &  Wilcox   $5,000   4  

CMS  Energy   $5,000   2  

Society  of  American  Florists   $4,000   4  

Building  Owners  &  Managers  Assn   $4,000   4  

Altec  Industries   $4,000   4  

Emerson   $3,500   4  

Charter  Communications   $3,500   4  

Assn  for  Manufacturing  Technology   $3,500   4  

National  Funeral  Directors  Assn   $3,500   3  

Dunkin'  Brands   $3,000   7  

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  Page  28  of  28  

American  Apparel  &  Footwear  Assn   $3,000   6  

Nat.  Electrical  Manufacturers  Assn   $3,000   5  

American  Nursery  &  Landscape  Assn   $3,000   4  

Brick  Industry  Assn   $2,500   5  

Providence  Health  &  Services   $2,500   2  

Texas  Instruments   $2,000   4  United  Services  Automobile  Assn  Group   $2,000   4  Cox  Enterprises   $2,000   4  

Rockwell  Collins  Inc   $1,000   5  

National  Grocers  Assn   $1,000   4  

National  School  Transportation  Assn   $1,000   4  

Snack  Food  Assn   $1,000   4  

United  Fresh  Produce  Assn   $1,000   4  

Canal  Barge  Co   $1,000   4  

Ball  Corp   $1,000   4  

Alcoa  Inc   $1,000   4  Intl  Assn  Amusement  Parks  &  Attractions   $1,000   2  Convergys  Corp   $1,000   2  

Carpet  &  Rug  Institute   $1,000   2  

Toyota  Motor  Corp   $750   12  

Meredith  Corp   $500   4  

Ingersoll-­‐Rand   $500   4  

Ashley  Furniture   $500   3  

Berkshire  Hathaway   $500   3  

GenCorp  Inc   $500   3  

TOTAL   $3,352,775