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]]]]]]]]]]] FEE SPEECH: CONGRES$$IONAL PAYOLA [[[[[[[[[[[[[
by Sysop (11/14/88)
Alerted by an article ``Easy Money'' in the Wall Street J.
(11/1/88, front page) on how lobbyists buy access to congressmen, I
contacted Common Cause. This is generally a leftist organization, but
on this occasion they did good work regardless of their motives (pro-
bably exposing defense contractors and other industries).
Senators subsist on a starvation wage of $87,483 (an amount that
they will soon increase again). Congressmen have to subsist on
slightly less ($86,283), until they, too, pass a law for the needy.
Permitted extra income includes honoraria, ostensibly paid as
fees for speeches, but in reality a simple purchase price to gain
access to your upright repre$entative, paid almost exclusively by
lobbies and pressure groups. The total paid to members of Congress in
1988 has already hit and exceeded $10 million.
To make this payola seem respectable, senators have to give the
proceeds to charity, except for a trifling consideration of $35,000
(30% of their starvation salary). In the House of Ill Repute, the
limitation is $25,000 so that they can keep to hold body and soul
together.
Most of those on this payoff are tidy people: they are at or near
the limit of the official limitation, meaning they cleaned out the
trough almost completely.
However, the limitation does not mean much anyway. They can give
the money to strengthen ``charities'' that will help them remain at
the trough, or they can, like Madam $chroeder, give it to organiza-
tions supporting Ortega.
When racket-busting prosecutor William Weld first came to Washing-
ton in 1986, he found out that United Coal Co. paid several Democratic
House members $2,000 each to take a trip by private jet and discuss
mine safety legislation, and he wanted to seek a federal indictment of
the congressmen. Nothing doing; they only took ``honoraria,'' as per-
mitted by law. By law as written by the congressmen.
What is theft and corruption when corrupt thieves define it?
Here are they are, your upright Congre$$men and $enators with the
annual payola they pocket when they are not staging a witch hunt on
Meese's or other opponents' ethics:
$enate $ Hou$e of Repre$. $
------- --------------
Dole (R-KS) 106,050 Ro$tenow$ki (D-IL) 245,000
Holling$ (D-SC) 99,400 Gray (D-PA) 119,000
Reigle (D-MI) 86,750 Gradison (R-OH) 96,250
Hatch (R-UT) 79,926 Cheney (R-WY) 79,350
Lugar (R-IN) 71,485 Coelho (D-CA) 78,500
$imp$on (R-WY) 71,425 Coelho (D-CA) 78,500
Da$chle (D-SD) 60,450 Waxman (D-CA) 76,400
Boren (D-OK) 59,175 Frenzel (R-MN) 70,650
Moynihan (D-NY) 55,575 Michel (R-IL) 61,250
Packwood (R-OR) 50,500 Luken (D-OH) 59,700
Durenbrgr.(R-MN)50,050 Mat$ui (D-CA) 55,950
Bradley (D-NJ) 49,600 Barnard (D-GA) 52,355
Wirth (D-CO) 49,300 $chroeder (D-CO) 50,630
$ymms (R-ID) 47,600 Anthony (D-AR) 48,700
D'Amato (R-NY) 47,350 Dingell (D-MI) 48,300
Pre$$ler (R-SD) 47,100 Lott (R-MS) 46,900
Baucu$ (D-MT) 47,050 Wright (D-TX) 45,850
$helby (D-AL) 46,800 Gephardt (D-MO) 41,000
Dixon (D-IL) 46,500 Tauke (R-IA) 39,050
Chafee (R-RI) 44,125 LaFalce (D-NY) 38,500
Bond (R-MO) 44,000 Crane (R-IL) 38,418
Mitchell (D-ME) 42,225 Leath (D-TX) 38,000
Byrd (D-WV) 41,050 Rangel (D-NY) 37,500
Kasten (R-WI) 40,500 $olarz (D-NY) 34,275
$chneider (R-RI) 32,350
.......
etc., etc., etc.,
Keep on paying, sucker!
* * *
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