Max Baucus going fishing with lobbyists this weekend

[DrToast]

Lobbyists Will Cast Their Lines During Baucus' Fishing Weekend

Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus of Montana plans to take a break from the grind of crafting a health care overhaul to serve as a Democratic rainmaker with a few of his friends along the Madison, Gallatin and Yellowstone rivers in the Treasure State this weekend.

Lobbyists and political supporters will get their chance to cast fishing lines and drive golf balls with the Senate's top tax writer at his Fly-Fishing & Golfing in Big Sky event. The cost is $2,500 per person, $5,000 for a political action committee. And for the same price, more fun lies ahead at Camp Baucus, the summer camp he holds for friends and their families in his home state between July 31 and Aug. 2.

Advocates of public financing of elections -- such as Craig Holman, a lobbyist for Public Citizen -- say lucrative parties like the Baucus events give special interests undue influence over legislation.

"It's unseemly to be doing this just before the markup," said Holman, referring to pending committee action on Baucus' draft health care bill. "This kind of schmoozing of lawmakers clearly buys influence. This kind of event clearly shows why we need public financing."

http://change-congress.org/">It's the money, stupid!

[Joanne98]

1. Oh my fucking God!!!!!!!!!! Here's his CONTACT PAGE!!!!!!!!!

:nuke:

http://www.congress.org/congressorg/mail/?id=361&lvl=C&chamber=S

If that doesn't work......

http://www.congress.org/bio/id/361

[DrToast]

3. Hard to believe. It almost sounds like an Onion article, huh? nt

[depakid]

17. The arrogance is just....

[pleah]

20. This is the message that I left:

Clearly you do not care about the people of this country and whether or not they can afford to see a doctor, since you are taking a vacation with the very people that want to crush health care for the people.
Rest assured I will help the great people of your state find someone that will do what the people ask of their elected officials.

signed: someone that can't afford to get sick



It may not be perfectly worded, I'm really pissed, but, I think I got my point across.

[Joanne98]

24. Good for you!

[kimmylavin]

28. Thanks for that info.

I just sent him a very polite "go to hell" message.
This is unbelievable...

[sisters6]

30. I told him to give up his Fed. Health benefits until he can

get a health plan passed with REAL public option or single payer.
I left message at his billings office.



Billings Office: (more district offices)

222 North 32nd Street, Suite 100
Billings, Montana 59101
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Billings Office:
222 North 32nd Street, Suite 100
Billings, Montana 59101
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

Helena Office:
30 West 14th Street, Suite 206
Helena, Montana 59601
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

Missoula Office:
218 East Front Street, Suite B2
Missoula, Montana 59802
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

Kalispell Office:
8 Third Street East
Kalispell, Montana 59901
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

Bozeman Office:
32 East Babcock, Suite 114
Bozeman, Montana 59715
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

Butte Office:
125 West Granite, Silverbow Center
Butte, Montana 59701
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

Great Falls Office:
113 3rd Street North
Great Falls, Montana 59401
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

[tbyg52]

31. Better yet, write a LTTE. I think I feel one coming on, myself.

Be sure and name names.

[gblady]

2. grrrrrrrrr!

:puke:

[AzDar]

4. Wow.

:wow:

[Lars39]

5. You know, if they keep ignoring the wants and needs of the people,

there will be revolution. People won't have anything to lose at that point.

[billyoc]

6. See, now, if he was Obama, he could keep the list secret.

[MUAD_DIB]

7. $2,500 per person.

Most people couldn't afford $250.


I wonder how many of Max's constituents actually get to lobby him face to face...and what he charges for it.

:eyes:


Really, all of this s hit should just be outlawed. If you want to meet with your elected officials it should cost you $0, and there should absolutely be NO INFLUENCE PEDALING.

[Fovea]

8. RE Max Baucus.

Let's find the enhanced interrogation technique that will get us Single Payer.

[Joanne98]

9. Let's try to get this on MSNBC tonight......EMAIL

The Ed Show
[e-mail]

Maddow
[e-mail]

[DrToast]

10. Doing this right now. Everyone do this. It only takes a minute.

[druidity33]

11. K&R for visibility... nt.

[Wapsie B]

12. And why does this not disqualify him from having any role in healthcare legislation?

I was going to mention something about why did someone like Wellstone have to die and we get stuck with an ass like Baucus, but I'll say no more.

[Dr Fate]

26. I would love to hear a "good" DEM Senator ask that very question- on TV.

LOL! I wont hold my breath.

That would blow the "cover."

For that matter- I'd love to hear The President say what he thinks about your sound reasoning. He did campaing against excessive lobbyist influence.

[pscot]

13. May this thread live long and prosper

K&R

[XOKCowboy]

14. When do we pass real campaign finance reform?

If this isn't a good enough reason I don't know what is.

[DrToast]

19. We need to channel all this energy into getting the Fair Elections Now Act passed.

http://www.commoncause.org/site/pp.asp?c=dkLNK1MQIwG&b=4773857

It's not just health care. Special interests have their fingers in every aspect of public policy. And they make sure their needs are taken care of first.

[Hawkowl]

15. Fascism at its finest.

Why not just dispense with elections altogether? We could just have the Dow Jones top 50 companies just send their lobbyists directly to the Senate? I mean they have shareholder meetings right? So corporations are democratic institutions, no?

WAKE THE FUCK UP PEOPLE!

[Sebastian Doyle]

16. I hope the son of a bitch drowns.

Maybe then a REAL Democrat can take his place.

[salguine]

18. Maybe it would be possible to hire a plane to circle his boat, trailing a banner reading

"kiss your Senate seat goodbye Max" or something to that effect.

Seriously.

[izquierdista]

21. How about Montana DUers?

Are any of you getting out the art supplies and rolls of paper? If he is touring around the state, he NEEDS to see hand painted signs. Lots of them.

[tranche]

22. This is a big reason "change" won't be coming anytime soon.

When I see these windbags in the Senate and ranking congressman smiling as the heads of their committees I know there's so far to go.

[Thrill]

23. No shame at all. Wow

[Dr Fate]

25. Any other Top DEMS speaking out against this- or just more good cop/bad cop cover?

Any of the DEMS crying "we dont have the votes" as their top excuse going on TV and saying a single WORD about this?

No?

Good cop/bad cop, then.

Seems to me that if DEMS were sincere- then the "good" DEMS would expose this and use it as a way to shame him into "having the vote" for the people instead of "having the vote" for his multi-millionae fishing & golfing buddies.

DEMS are covering for each other- we are supposed to blame faceless, nameless "we dont have the votes" Senators- but none of the "good DEMS" seem to be taking any kind of public fight to these DEMS who are siding with the Republicans & lobbyists.

Obama himself campaigned against this kind of thing- I'd love to see him name this specific event as an example of the corruption he was talking about. I dont think he will, but it would be great if he did.

[dmr]

35. Don't think it will happen; from the article:

Looks like he donates to some of his fellow Dems; and if this means anything: Baucus' former Chief of Staff is now the president's Deputy Chief of Staff.

Baucus has mastered the art of getting special interests to donate to his Glacier leadership political action committee, which he has used to help out colleagues. Of the $1.4 million collected in the 2007-08 cycle, Glacier PAC handed out $196,000 to federal candidates, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. This includes donations of at least $5,000 to 25 Democratic senators, including 10 members of two committees writing the health care bill: Finance and Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.

The onset of the peak fly-fishing -- and fundraising -- season in Montana coincides with intense lobbying by groups seeking to shape the pending health care overhaul and provisions in must-pass tax-cut-extension measures.

In the last Congress, Baucus joined with House Ways and Means Chairman Charles B. Rangel, D-N.Y., to promote a new effort, the Baucus-Rangel Leadership Fund. But it lasted just four months, collecting $150,000, before each man decided to focus on his own political war chest.

Now Baucus has emerged as one of his party's fundraising champions. His former chief of staff, Jim Messina, serves as President Obama's deputy chief of staff, and Baucus has a phalanx of allies on K Street that includes a number of former aides.

Given Baucus' behavior ("we need more cops"), I just don't get how anyone can view this as ethical.

[ellisonz]

27. Puke.

[Dr Fate]

29. KICK. n/t

n/t

[CoffeeCat]

32. This little fishing party needs to be crashed!!!!

Find out where these schmucks are fishing and crash the scene with posters
and chants!

Geez, these clowns don't even care anymore that we know they hate us and are in bed with the corporations!!!

[Daphne08]

33. This is perverse. Period.

How much would it cost for one of his constituents to lobby him?? This is sick!

[grillo7]

34. This is right out of the Repuke playbook...

This is disgusting...and this is the man who's leading health "reform" in the Senate? No wonder the public option is fading fast...I'm calling and faxing ASAP.

[vaberella]

36. Can we picket him, whereever he's fishing?! n/t