Coleman, Franken, Wall Street: Who’s received more campaign $$ from crisis and scandal-plagued FIRE sector?
Friday, September 19, 2008 at 2:03 pm
- 2 Comments
Franken's half-million from the FIRE sector pales beside Norm's nearly $2 million.
During the 2008 cycle, Sen. Norm Coleman has received three and a half times more in campaign contributions than Al Franken from interests in the so-called FIRE (Finance, Insurance, Real Estate) sector at the heart of the continuing financial crisis–and over twice as much from the principal players in this week’s Wall Street drama.
This morning I crunched the following Minnesota US Senate race numbers from the Center for Responsive Politics’ campaign finance database at Open Secrets. I was looking for two things:
1) Norm Coleman and Al Franken’s respective contributions from the four most prominent players in this week’s Wall Street crisis (the bankrupt Lehman Brothers; bailout recipient AIG; near-bankrupt Merrill Lynch; and Bank of America, which agreed to acquire Merrill Lynch).
2) Coleman and Franken’s overall contributions from companies in the crisis-plagued FIRE sector.
The numbers cited below all are from the 2008 cycle, and are current through the most recent reporting period, which ended on July 28.
Coleman and Franken’s donations from this week’s Wall Street headline-makers:
Coleman $4,300; Franken $1,000
Coleman $8,300; Franken $1,000
Franken $4,525; Coleman $2,400
Coleman $1,000; Franken $0
Total: Coleman $16,000; Franken $6,525
Coleman and Franken’s funding from the FIRE sector (*):
Total:
Coleman $1,833,281
Franken $513,787*
[* Though the insurance industry does not appear among Franken's top 20 donor industries--which is as far as Open Secrets' website goes without getting into custom data sets--this does not mean Franken has gotten no money from insurance interests. It does mean that his donations from the insurance biz equal less than the $28,750 given by number 20 on Franken's list, organized labor.]
2 Comments
Comment posted September 20, 2008 @ 1:18 am
What troubles me is what kind of crime does a Liberal have to perpetrate in order to not get endorsed? Franken blows off taxes in 17 states until he was caught, then admits “an oversight”. What an absolute pile of dung. This guy is an absolute scumbag, and his endorsement for Senator is a black eye for this state and the liberal party.
How about reporting the real guilty parties of this disaster?
Senator Chris Dodd D-CT Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee.
Top 5 Contributors, 2003-2008
Citigroup Inc $310,294
SAC Capital Partners $282,000
United Technologies $263,400
American International Group $224,678
Bear Stearns $205,600
Congressman Barney Frank D-MA Chairman Financial Services Committee
Top 5 Industries, 2007-2008
Real Estate $179,851
Securities & Investment $168,900
Lawyers/Law Firms $154,018
Insurance $126,298
Misc Finance $52,700
Both of these individuals should be investigated AND submit letters of resignation.
Comment posted September 25, 2008 @ 10:19 pm
Let’s face it, since about the late 60′s according to all the economists, economic professor’s and other financial market people who have been around for at least the past 28 to 40 years.
BOTH POLITICAL PARTIES have had their politicians dipping their hands into the “FIRE” handbag.
Both parties are responsible for greatly contributing to where ths financial mess is right now.
When are the America People going to stand up and demand an end to the system once and for all that the politicians themselves created and kept refining with loopholes over the years to create more ways to keep the PAC and lobbist’s thriving and giving.
Hell, the one item what should be attached to this Financial Bailout plan is one final law that says no more cash nor gifts to the politicians.
How’s that for a beginning into the issue of killing off a section of “pork barrel polictic’s” John and Obama?
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