Beatty to Kerry and Obama: "Give Back Fanny/Fred Lobbyist Money"

Release:

BOSTON– Today, U.S. Senate candidate Jeff Beatty condemned John Kerry and Barack Obama for being among the top recipients of campaign contributions from lobbying efforts of the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Beatty is demanding that Barack Obama and John Kerry return these campaign contributions immediately.

This week, the U.S. government agreed to bail out Freddie Mac and Fannie Mea in an attempt to shore up the credit markets and strengthen the economy. Taking these donations, even as Freddie and Fannie fell into crisis, shows that yet again Kerry and Obama are putting their own political interests above the needs taxpayers and citizens.

“By taking hundreds of thousands of dollars from these finance giants who are known to game the system, John Kerry and Barack Obama are showing what Americans can expect if they are elected: politics as usual,” Beatty said. “This means that two of the U.S. Senate’s least productive lawmakers are among the top recipients of contributions from these two financial giants. Well now, it’s the taxpayers who must foot the bill for this bailout and Barack Obama and John Kerry should not benefit by keeping these campaign contributions.”

According to OpenSecrets.org, between 1998 and 2008, John Kerry – one of the richest members of the U.S. Senate -- accepted $111,000 in campaign contributions from the embattled financial mortgage giants, second only to Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT). Presidential nominee Barack Obama was third on the list of top recipients, accepting more than $105,000 in contributions.

“From voting for the war in Iraq to accepting six-figure contributions from Washington lobbyists, John Kerry has consistently shown poor judgment while refusing to be held accountable for his decisions,” Beatty said. “As a U.S. senator, I will draw on my experience to restore good judgment and accountability to our government.”

Beatty noted that his grass-roots campaign to defeat John Kerry has raised almost $1.5 million from almost 35,000 individual contributions. The campaign also has 3,000 volunteers supporting its efforts to bring change to the U.S. Senate. “Throughout his career, John Kerry has repeatedly put his own political ambitions ahead of the best interests of his constituents,” Beatty said. “The people of Massachusetts deserve a senator who will put their interests first.”

Jonah Goldberg has a little post on this over at The Corner.