Lawmakers Hire Spouses Regularly(for much much less than Delay's half mil)

[Robbien]

<snip>

"My wife raised $250,000 more than I ever raised with all the expensive consultants," Rep. Ron Lewis, R-Ky., told the AP. Lewis hired his wife, Kayi, to be his campaign director and campaign manager about a year ago, and he pays her $50,000 a year. He estimated the hiring saved him more than $40,000 a year in salary and consulting fees.

Mary Hayworth, wife of Republican Rep. J.D. Hayworth of Arizona, earns $20,000 a year as the director and only employee of his political action committee. "The minimal salary she's paid is far less than if you hired somebody in from outside," spokesman Larry VanHoose said.

. . .

Lieberman's presidential campaign paid the senator's wife, Hadassah, at least $22,000, records show. His son Matthew received about $34,000 and his daughter Rebecca about $36,000. Sherry Brown, who was the presidential campaign's chief of staff, said the Lieberman children were paid on par with other staff members doing fund-raising work. Payments to Hadassah Lieberman were for reimbursement of expenses, Brown said.

. . .

Laurie Stupak, wife of Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., said she has earned about $36,000 annually during the past two years as the finance director for her husband's campaign. She said she was paid slightly more -- nearly $3,900 a month -- for part of last year because she served as both campaign manager and finance director. She also received an election bonus of $2,500 last November. The money was earned by working more than 40 hours a week and traveling long hours on weekends in a sprawling district, she said.

http://www.newsday.com/news/politics/wire/sns-ap-congress-nepotism,0,2438069.story?coll=sns-ap-politics-headlines

[HereSince1628]

1. NEPOTISM its the name of the game inside the beltway

We like to think that our country isn't governed by a system of entitled peers. We need to think again. Nepotism is part of the way things are done in American governance.

[saracat]

2. You know, I don't give a F***CK WHO they are,

I don't want my money going to hire their families! I guess in Lieberman's case he had to PAY his family to support him? No wonder these people are rich. Damn. This pisses me off. It really does. They not only collect their salaries ,but also pay their wives and children with our campaign donations! I had no idea that a campaign was the same as a family business! Call me stupid.

[Career Prole]

3. ROFLMFAO! Everyone they listed also listed what position they held

within the campaign, save one...

Vice President Dick Cheney's daughter Mary was paid about $81,000 by the Bush-Cheney re-election campaign.

Mary Cheney wasn't listed as an organizer, a staffer, a fundraiser, or anything else.

Apparently she raked in eighty grand simply because there's something about Mary.

[Emboldened Chimp]

10. It was hush money (nt)

[mumon]

11. Ah, yes, they'd already figured out what she was...

it was merely a question of negotiating the price, no?

[whistle]

4. Politics is becoming a family affair

[ps1074]

5. Lieberman is in nice company again

Imagine you are a Lieberman supporter during the primaries. You donate to his campaign the last money you have for whatever reason (I personally can't find a reason to support him). And what does the fucker do? Puts your hard earned bucks into his wife, daughter and sons pockets. Asshole.

[Mistress Quickly]

6. Ahhh, but the half mil

was over a 4-5 year period. There's no difference between what Delay does and what every other politician in DC does. (almost all, see my note at the end). I can't sit here any more and act like the Democratic party is pure and innocent. The whole trips, and lobbyists, and tit-for-tat is a big game to them. It all makes me sick to have our country run by these people.

From the story:

the wife and daughter of House Majority Leader Tom DeLay had been paid more than $500,000 since 2001

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Here's some about Harry Reid from 2003:

http://www.latimes.com/la-na-sonsday223jun23,1,1120739.story?ctrack=1&cset=true

>>>snip<<<<

What Reid did not explain was that the bill promised a cavalcade of benefits to real estate developers, corporations and local institutions that were paying hundreds of thousands of dollars in lobbying fees to his sons' and son-in-law's firms, federal lobbyist reports show.

The Howard Hughes Corp. alone paid $300,000 to the tiny Washington consulting firm of son-in-law Steven Barringer to push a provision allowing the company to acquire 998 acres of federal land ripe for development in the exploding Las Vegas metropolitan area.

Barringer is listed in federal lobbyist reports as one of Hughes' representatives on the measure that his father-in-law introduced.

Other provisions were intended to benefit a real estate development headed by a senior partner in the Nevada law firm that employs all four of Reid's sons — by moving the right-of-way for a federal power-transmission line off his property and onto what had been protected federal wilderness.

>>>end snip<<<<

And this from wirlednutdrooly: (it's actually a good article, because it is critical of the pandering and lobbying of ALL politicians in DC)

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=16340
>>>snip<<<

Then influential House Republican anti-impeachment leader, Rep. Chris Shays, was able to avoid public notice when his wife Betsy quietly accepted a six-figure appointment as Director of Ameri-Corps from close Clinton confidant and early damage-control aide Mark Gearan, now director of the Peace Corps. The job came through on Oct. 8, 1998 -- just eight weeks before the actual House impeachment vote. And these are the appointments that are known.

>>>end snip<<<





So why am I putting this out there? Stirring up trouble? A 'hidden freeper'? Nope, just tired of politicians in general. All of them. They are all corrupt money loving power hungry carnivores.

Well, almost all of them. If you'll notice - you will never find Kucinich's name in any of these messes. Why? In my opinion, he's not for sale. The problem with that? He can't win because he's not for sale. Alas, at least he can sleep well at night. 98% of the others can't.

[Toots]

7. 3-4 years and a half million is a lot more

In three years it would be a hundred and sixty five thousand a year not twenty two thousand or even thirty six thousand. They were paid exceptionally well even by congressional standards. In fact the daughter got her whole baby shower paid for by lobbyists and in fact one of them poured champaigne over her while she took a hot tub. I would say they were flaunting it a bit. I could be wrong though..

[Frances]

8. Once again people are saying that there is no difference

between Dems and Repubs.

If you follow that logic, especially in the examples cited above, then there is no difference between a mountain and a mole hill.

Any way thanks for pointing out that DeLay's wife and daughter averaged $165,000 per year while the figures for the Dems averaged less than $30,000 per year.

Maybe the Dems should do what George Washington did & simply ask that they be reimbursed for their expenses. I thing the Dems would come out about even while DeLay's wife and daughter each comes out $130,000 ahead.

[Mistress Quickly]

9. Oh, you're not wrong

but the whole 'inside the beltway' game makes me ill. All of it, all of them.

one of them poured champaigne over her while she took a hot tub.

Do you have a source so I can rub noses in that? That's just creepy.