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Politics : Liberalism: Do You Agree We've Had Enough of It? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (60758)	3/8/2009 11:36:33 PM
From: HPilot	1 Recommendation Respond to of 224724

Just wondering if your opinion about the size of the national debt remains the same. It was sustainable till Obama grew it way too large.

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (60758)	3/9/2009 11:47:07 AM
From: JakeStraw	3 Recommendations Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 224724

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (60758)	3/9/2009 12:04:21 PM
From: longnshort	2 Recommendations Respond to of 224724

Democrats dine with lobbyists, donors Members of Congress reject Obama's rules, ride rising tide of power Jennifer Haberkorn (Contact) Monday, March 9, 2009 President Obama banned lobbyists from raising or giving money to his presidential campaign, but his Democratic colleagues in Congress aren't following suit. House leaders are set to dine Monday night inside the home of two lobbyists with donors who are paying $5,000 or more apiece to attend. The proceeds from the fundraiser at the $1.4 million Woodley Park home of a powerhouse lobbying couple - Heather and Tony Podesta - will go to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Seven Democratic members of Congress, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California and Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, are scheduled to attend. It's the second of six such fundraising dinners scheduled at the Podesta home this month that will give donors access to Democratic luminaries, including the chairmen of congressional committees. The invitation, a copy of which was obtained by The Washington Times from an invitee, promises a seated dinner with a celebrity chef. The suggested contributions are $5,000 for guests, $15,000 for PAC supporters and $30,400 - the federal maximum to a committee - to be a host. THE WASHINGTON TIMES IN TOUCH: Tony Podesta and his wife, Heather (right), here with Amy Hawkins at a 2004 reception at the Kennedy Center, are hosting a fundraiser Monday at their Woodley Park home. Since political power has shifted to Democrats, the tide of money and lobbying power also has moved from Republicans to Democrats. "I've certainly seen a ton of Democratic fundraisers," said Nancy Watzman, who keeps an unofficial tally of political fundraisers for the Sunlight Foundation's Political Partytime Web site. "What we know from other cycles is that money follows power." Mr. Obama voiced a hard line against lobbyists during his presidential campaign. The campaign and, subsequently, the Democratic National Committee banned donations from or bundled by lobbyists. "You won't see this type of activity still going on for the DNC. But members of Congress and the DCCC never agreed to those restrictions," said Craig Holman, a government affairs lobbyist for Public Citizen, a Washington watchdog group. Mr. Van Hollen, DCCC chairman, co-sponsored the 2007 Honest Leadership and Open Government Act that, among other provisions, requires lobbyists to disclose bundling activity. The law, designed to bring lobbying activity out into the open, requires fundraisers such as the one Monday night to be disclosed, said DCCC spokeswoman Jennifer Crider. washingtontimes.com