Phone Companies Seeking Immunity Gave Money To Key Senator

The New York Times:

Executives at the two biggest phone companies contributed more than $42,000 in political donations to Senator John D. Rockefeller IV this year while seeking his support for legal immunity for businesses participating in National Security Agency eavesdropping.

The surge in contributions came from a Who's Who of executives at the companies, AT&T and Verizon, starting with the chief executives and including at least 50 executives and lawyers at the two utilities, according to campaign finance reports.

Read the whole story: The New York Times

Comments

[fedup07]

it appears that most politicians are just whores...t­here are a few that still have morals and are not greedy bastards -e.g. Russ Feingold, Dennis Kucinich, probably Ron Paul but let's face it, the Rockefeller family, the Bush Family, and countless others will do ANYTHING for a buck -including murdering innocent people, spying on American citizens, anything -their frickin disgusting!

[steamboat]

But Rockefeller is a LIBERAL democrat. So how could he possibly do anything wrong?

Hurry up Arianna, remove this story from this blog after one day like you did the Jindal becoming Governor of Louisiana story.

[PoliticalPolyanna]

What's his party affiliation got to do with it? Does it matter whether he's a Dem or a Rep? No. Wrong is wrong.

[pleeezzze]

steamboat.­..Who's the slime trying to BUY their way ???????

[fourex]

Steamboat, most thinking people judge others by their actions and not by a title administered by MSM.

[scooperss]

Good grief. If he did something wrong he needs to go. No if, ands, or butts (snicker).

[thromulese]

If you would bother to read the comments (or have someone literate read them to you) you would realize that we dems even go after our own brethren when it is deserved. Compare that to the republiCONs who are still defending torture, Blackwater, rendition, and anything else their criminal dictator king comes up with.

But I guess that is how it works if you’re the party of airport mens rooms and consider incompetence to be a virtue.

The perfect republiCON candidate for 08:

None of the above.

[Nyla785]

It's becoming pretty clear--we no longer have our country anymore. No one listens to the people--we can't prevent Bush from doing ANYTHING--and they're trying to make this a PERMANENT condition. Beware, Americans--your country no longer belongs to you.

[fourex]

It appears that Rockefeller has dirtied his hands with Iraq, torture, and spying, voting against the constitution on all three issues. An amnesty would certainly help him personally.

[Ipanema]

That is it! We now clearly qualify as a genuine Banana Republic, where there is no respect for the law and corruption is rampant. Worse still, we have no bananas, but a bunch of criminals in charge of this mis-Administration and Congress. Let's vote all the incumbets out next election and start again!

[PollM]

.
Selling out America and the American people, the provision set a real bad precedence.

Sen. Rockefeller claims sharp increases in contributions from telecoms had no influence on his support for the immunity provision, Is Sen. a Rockefeller a crook?

---- /> http://www.youpolls.com/details.asp?pid=773

Let him know
.

[Grannysue]

Oh Rocky, just another Repukin in Dems clothing. So they bought him and a few others out. Money talks folks, and depending on how much it talks loud or soft, either way we get screwed!

[steamboat]

Just ask the Clintons !

[jsarets]

The only thing surprising about this is the outstanding bargain of buying political influence. For $42K, a telco might not even be able to hire a technician to climb telephone poles, but they can hire a U.S. Senator to insulate the corporation from lawsuits. In a nation where the rich are exorbitantly wealthy, one would think that such bribery would be at least a 6-figure proposition.

What kind of civil suit can a high-profile business quietly settle these days for this kind of corporate pocket change? I'm not sure what I find more unflattering about our Congressional leadership: that their support can be so easily bought, or that they aren't shrewd enough to extract a fair market value for their loyalties.

The Democrats can't even be corrupt without seeming weak and ineffectual.

[jazzman]

What a strange coincidence that Sir John the Fourth received all this money from telecoms when he was in control of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

Of course, we know that John Rockefeller would never allow a policy decision to be guided by lobbying or cash. No, John, we're certain that it had nothing to do with your decision..­.not!

[Dandy12]

Along with his shower of money, he needs a "golden shower". Perhaps this "cooperation" with the telecoms is a bit ex post facto especially in consideration on taken in conjunction with this administration and their mind set. With a last name like that, 42K is like lunch money...

[Dap]

))))))))))­))))))))))­)) Chumps ((((((((((­((((((((((­(

[Richterscale]

Rocky is a key player in the New World Order.

[knosiswar]

If the American People ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks...wi­ll deprive the people of all property until their children wake-up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered.­.. The issuing power should be taken from the banks and restored to the people, to whom it properly belongs."
President, Thomas Jefferson

http://www.fdrs.org/index.html

[ConcernedAboutRFuture]

Just another repukingcan in Dem clothing. Freakin' sickening!

[Gatormouth]

A corporatist mole in the party. You have to remember, Neocon is not synonymous with Republican or conservative. The Republicans are starting to figure this out. Neither is Corporatist. These creatures are opportunistic. They will try to appear to be whatever gets them elected. Lieberman , Kerry, the Clintons are all less progressive than Eisenhower was. Even Goldwater would make a good moderate Democrat now!

[steamboat]

Laugh as you may, Noam Chomsky said, "Richard Nixon was our last liberal president.­" ....thats Noam Chomsky saying that.

[syllepsis]

They're not 'moles' if they ARE the party.
Feingold and Kucinich and the like are the proverbial voices in the wilderness in the Democratic party.
They have as much in common with the likes of Pelosi and Clinton as Lincoln Chafee had with James Imhofe.
Chafee has split the GOP. I wonder when Feingold will ditch the party that has barely pretended to tolerate him.
And when voters will get sick of possum Dems, playing dead so Republicans won't get offended.
I mean, today's Republicans. The Mafia.

[vippy]

Most people who vote are not ready for a reform on elections ergo no change in our system.
They naively presume that the DEMS will make a difference, believing that the truth that is
coming to light is only for hate-mongers.
America has to fall flat on its face before
people will get angry enough to demand change!
And our politicians know it - especially Hillary!

[Littledog]

Anyone who knows Jay knows he can't be bought. Was this crap put out by the Repukes?

[TRichards]

This is news?! Folks, our democracy has long ago been bought out. Our representatives no longer represent us but the corporations that feed them.

Our votes are just a lottery to see who will next get to feed at the trough. "As for the nation's poor and weakening middle class, tough. It's America. Become wealthy and we'll support you too. Otherwise, here is our message to you: 'Not my taxes!' Get it?"

Democracy in the U.S. has just become a Hollywood store front with nothing behind it. Nothing. Our votes are just are assurances that we're still buying the Big Fraud.

All our beliefs about this country have been shattered. We believe in torture. We do not believe in keeping to our treaties. We believe the ends justifies the means. We believe in pre-emptive wars and in no accountability. We find the Geneva Accords to be quaint and outdated. We embrace a President who spent 9/11 in search of the perfect bunker for #1 as a hero and let him trash legitimate war heroes and out a CIA agent.

We accept it all. For we are Americans. And THAT alone makes us right and just and a model for the world.

Disagree. Then, shut the hell up! We're listening. We're watching. The day will come when we may just take you in the middle of the night without charges or a trial. And, guess what, your neighbors will agree that we must have had a good reason. Because we're America!

Seriously, let's not confuse the America envisioned by the founding fathers with the America that Bush and his cronies have fashioned . . . perhaps with the help of YOUR I'm-scared­-protect-m­e vote. Get a spine. Stop reacting like cowards to the fear campaigns of the Right and stop giving the Democrats fee reign to promise one thing and deliver another when the price is right.

Good grief. Does Rockefeller need more money?! The thing about greed is that it's an itch that can never be scratched sufficiently.