Here's How Much Betsy DeVos Paid Senators To Get Her Position Endorsed

[Initech]

WASHINGTON ― The nomination of billionaire heiress Betsy DeVos to head the Department of Education is one vote shy of failing in the Republican-controlled Senate. One thing that could come to her aid is that she and the entire DeVos family are massive Republican Party donors who helped fund the election of the remaining senators who will decide her fate.

Big donors often get positions in government, ambassadorships or ceremonial titles, but rarely do they come as big as DeVos. Sitting Republican senators have received $115,000 from Betsy DeVos herself, and more than $950,000 from the full DeVos clan since 1980. In the past two election cycles alone, her family has donated $8.3 million to Republican Party super PACs.



After Sens. Susan Collins (R-Me.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) announced their opposition to DeVos, her opponents turned their sights on other potential no votes from Republicans. The last hope to scuttle her nomination appears to be Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.). Like a lot of his colleagues, Toomey has received financial support from DeVos and her family throughout his career.

Toomey received $60,050 from the DeVos family during his political career. He was also boosted by two super PACs in his successful 2016 re-election campaign that received DeVos money. Freedom Partners Action Fund, the super PAC founded by the billionaire Koch brothers, spent $7 million to support Toomey’s election while getting $150,000 from the DeVos family. Senate Leadership Fund, a super PAC linked to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), spent $15 million to back Toomey after getting more than $2 million from the DeVos family.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/betsy-devos-donations_us_5893bd80e4b0c1284f251c5f?uk5c2okeurrafw29&

We need to get back in power and we need to overturn Citizens United now, or DeVos will just be a stain on an even larger problem.

[Fred Sanders]

1. 2 superpacs and 21 million dollars spent on supporting Toomey. Wow, the system IS rigged.

[3catwoman3]

2. So much for "One man, one vote."

One dollar, one vote.

[Turbineguy]

3. Cotton, Hatch and Inhofe

Nuttin' better than a cheap Senator!

[bhikkhu]

4. It would be nice if, like in court, benefactees had to recuse themselves

As in, if a person in public office has been paid money by an individual, that person shouldn't be allowed to use their office to reciprocate. It would seem sensible, and without such an expectation corruption is virutally guaranteed.

[moondust]

5. Crime pays.

Oh wait...that's still not a crime.

I've never before seen a cabinet nominee with ZERO qualifications. NONE. (Unless one maybe considers driving past a school a qualification for a cabinet-level position?)

[TexasBushwhacker]

6. This alone should have disqualified her n/t