Cashing In On Obstruction

7/30/2019 Cashing In On Obstruction

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Cashing In On ObstructionHow Mitch McConnells Abuse of the Filibuster andOther Senate Rules Benefits His Big Money Donors

By Tam Doan and Kurt Walters of Public Campaign Action Fund

January 2013


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Executive Summary

Since Republicans lost the majority in 2006 and Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) became minority

leader in 2007, the United States Senate has seen an unprecedented level of filibustering and

obstruction. McConnell has been at the helm of a scorched earth policy of blocking nearly every

bill and nominee that comes before the Senate, imposing an anti-democratic super-majorityrequirement to advance any legislation or appointment. This has meant little to no work on a

wide range of lingering problems from anemic job growth to unwarranted giveaways of tax

dollars to oil companies to the highest rates of inequality since the Gilded Age.

This report links the big trends and donors in McConnells enthusiastic fundraising career with

his willingness to foment legislative dysfunction, which serves to increase his power and enrich

his corporate donors while leaving American families to struggle. The eight cases of obstruction

examined in this report span several important policies and highly competent judicial and

administrative nominees. These cases are among the many instances where McConnell placed

the interests of his big money donors ahead of Kentuckians and everyday families.

Highlights

On the very day debate began on a bill to repeal subsidies to Big Oil, an astonishing$131,500 in campaign contributions passed from the hands of oil donors in Midland,

Texas into Mitch McConnells re-election war chest. Three days later the bill failed by

filibuster.

Companies that lobbied against bringing jobs back to America and ending tax breaks foroffshoring have given McConnell one million dollars to win his elections and look out for

their interests. Big McConnell donors such as GE, Microsoft, and Exxon Mobil also have

billions in untaxed profits stashed overseas.

Despite once supporting transparency, McConnell has led the effort to block theDISCLOSE Act and keep Americans in the dark about the money flowing into elections.

Wealthy individuals and companies spending millions in secret money have

overwhelmingly helped elect Republicans, an essential step in McConnells ambition to

become majority leader of the Senate.

Sen. McConnell took the unusual step of filibustering a district court nominee, formertrial lawyer Jack McConnell, who was vehemently opposed by the insurance industryand the U.S. Chamber of Commerce after Jack McConnell won a multi-billion dollar case

against lead paint companies. Sen. McConnell has received $1.7 million from insurance

interests, and has taken tens of thousands of dollars from one of the lead paint

companies in the case and its parent company.


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Introduction

Since Republicans lost the majority in 2006 and Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) became minority

leader in 2007, the Senate has seen a level of filibustering and obstruction that is literally

without precedent in the institutions history.

The number of filibusters1

jumped to an average of 130 for each of the Congresses in which

Republicans have been in the minority (110th

through 112th

), exactly double the average of 65

per two-year session from when Democrats were last in the minority. This is a historical

aberration. There were more filibusters in 2012 alone (67) than there were in the 54 years

between 1917 and 1970 (58).

Use of Filibuster Over Time Via Cloture Votes2

Unfortunately, this has real consequences for the amount of legislation that is passed to benefit

the American people. The 112th

Congress passed only 212 public bills through December 21,

2012, significantly lower than any two-year period at least as far back as World War II.3

This is

not just about divided government. When Democrats last held the Senate with a Republican-

controlled house, from 1981-1987, Congress still managed to pass an average of 587 public bills

each session.4

1This is measured by the number of cloture motions filed. Successfully invoking cloture takes 60 votes and ends a filibuster.

2Senate Actions on Cloture Motions, U.S. Senate. Accessed December 28, 2012:

http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/cloture_motions/clotureCounts.htm3Mimi Marziani et al., Curbing Filibuster Abuse, Brennan Center for Justice, November 16, 2012.

http://www.brennancenter.org/content/resource/curbing_filibuster_abuse4Mimi Marziani et al., Curbing Filibuster Abuse, Brennan Center for Justice, November 16, 2012.

http://www.brennancenter.org/content/resource/curbing_filibuster_abuse


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Behind this dysfunction and gridlock has been Sen. McConnells willingness to break with

Senate traditions and the culture of bipartisan compromise. Instead he has increasingly used

Senate rules to block any legislation he disfavors, even if it holds broad popular support and a

majority of votes in the legislature.

Looking through the list of bills and nominees that Republican senators have filibustered in thepast six years, a common theme emerges. Rather than addressing the concerns of everyday

people in Kentucky, Sen. McConnell and his allies have spent their energy abusing Senate rules

to block important policies and appointments opposed by a small number of politically

powerful groups, many of which are large sources of campaign cash to McConnells re-election

campaigns.

As this report will show, special interests such as Big Oil, corporate tax dodgers, insurance

companies, and Wall Street can count on McConnell to block legislation they dont like.

McConnell has even threatened to hold hostage middle-class tax cuts and other policies

important to everyday Americans until he gets his way. Kentuckians could rightly wonder whom

Mitch McConnell is standing up for in Congress.

The Senate Rules Fight

Faced with McConnell and his caucuss insistence on an anti-democratic super-majority

requirement for even routine pieces of legislation and nominations, even Senate traditionalists,

like Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) who opposed reforming the filibuster as recently as 2010, now

support reforming Senate rules to reduce abuse of the filibuster and other obstructionist

methods.

Reid and his colleagues in the Senate, including Senators Merkley (D-Ore.) and Udall (D-N.M.),now plan to bring forth a set of reforms such as the talking filibuster, requiring senators to

actually take the floor and speak in order to block legislation, and eliminating the ability to

filibuster the start of debate. He plans to use the constitutional option if necessary, allowing

changes to Senate rules through simple majority vote on the first day of a new Congress rather

than the two-thirds super-majority it requires otherwise. McConnell sees this as an affront:

What the majority leader is saying is he will break the rules of the Senate in order to

change the rules of the Senate. It has been the case in the past that it took a super

majority of 67 which of course meant that most rules changes occurred because the two

leaders agreed to them and were proposing them jointly, instead what the majorityleader is saying is that he will propose to change the rules with 51 votes, meaning his

side gets to decide what the rules are.5

5Changing Senate Rules,Congressional Record Vol. 158, No. 148, Government Printing Office, November 26, 2012.

http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CREC-2012-11-26/html/CREC-2012-11-26-pt1-PgS6878-3.htm


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Mitch McConnells Big Money Career7

A scan of Senator McConnells campaign money over his career reveals key trends: McConnell

has become increasingly dependent on donors that can give more, come from outside

Kentucky, and represent corporate interests, putting him farther and farther out of touch with

the needs of Kentucky residents.

Over his last three elections, McConnell has honed his fundraising skills and money has

followed his rise to power. He went from raising about $4 million in itemized contributions in

the six year period leading up to his 1996 election and more than $20 million for his 2008

election.

Over a long career of fundraising, Sen. McConnell has raised a staggering $45 million at least,

looking at just his campaign committee.8

He has raised an additional $6 million to his leadership

PAC (Bluegrass Committee), which McConnell uses to bolster the campaigns of otherRepublicans and firm up his leadership status.

McConnell was also able to turn his fundraising prowess into influence with his colleagues

when he served as chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee. In the 1998 and

2000 cyclesa rare two-term stintMcConnell brought in $91 million and then $96 million to

be distributed amongst Republican colleagues and candidates, following just $72 million being

raised in 1996. All the while, McConnell was leading efforts against campaign finance reform

that would place limits on the kind of soft money he depended on at the NRSC.

7Unless otherwise noted, all information on campaign contributions is based on analysis of data provided by the Center for

Responsive Politics, downloaded in bulk on October 29, 2012 from the Sunlight Foundation

(http://data.influenceexplorer.com). Itemized campaign contribution data (for donors giving more than $200 in a cycle) were

available starting from 1989 to June 30, 2012. Thus, 2012 cycle totals are partial. Unless otherwise noted, totals include

contributions to Sen. McConnells leadership PAC (Bluegrass Committee).8

This career total since 1989 is provided CRP and includes records available starting in 1989 (McConnell was first elected in

1984). This amount does not include money raised by his leadership PAC, Bluegrass Committee. Accessed December 16, 2012:

https://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.php?cycle=Career&type=I&cid=N00003389&newMem=N

Total Itemized Contributions Over 6 Year Election Cycles


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Unlike most other elected officials who view raising money as a necessary evil, McConnell

relishes fundraising. "When he asked for money, his eyes would shine like diamonds," said

former Sen. Alan Simpson (R-Wyo.). "He obviously loved it."9

Control over the disbursement of

that money also gave McConnell tremendous sway with his colleagues, which he was able to

cash in as votes for majority whip in 2002.

More large donors

Over his career, only about 16 percent ofthe money to McConnells campaign committee has

come from small donors, measured by unitemized contributions where donors gave less than

$200 in a cycle. In the most recent cycle, McConnells share of small money has dropped to a

mere five percent.10

McConnell is much more reliant on the large, itemized contributions of at

least $200. Among his large donors, the average total contribution per cycle has risen over the

years, particularly among PACs, which gave about $1,500 on average in the 1994 cycle and

nearly $4,000 in the most recent cycle. This increase follows McConnells rise to power as

minority leader, peaking in his last election in 2008.

Average Total Contribution Per Cycle for PACs and Individuals

9John Cheves, Price Tag Politics: Senators pet issue: money and the power it buys, Lexington Herald-Leader, October 15,

2006. http://wincoast.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-43005.html10

Mitch McConnell: Campaign Finance Summary, Center for Responsive Politics. Accessed December 20, 2012:

http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.php?type=C&cid=N00003389&newMem=N&cycle=2012

$0

$1,000

$2,000

$3,000

$4,000

$5,000

$6,000

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012

INDs

PACs


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More out-of-state donors

As McConnell gained rank within the Senate, the share of individual contributions he took from

Kentucky residents declined, reaching an all time low of 13 percent in the 2012 cycle.

Meanwhile, individual contributions from Texas, the Washington area (D.C., Maryland, and

Virginia), and the New York tri-state area (New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut), have

increased, representing McConnells rising favor with, respectively, oil tycoons, lobbyists, andbankers.

11In the 2012 cycle, the proportion of money from Texas (20%) and the New York tri-

state area (19%) each surpassed the share of money from inside Kentucky (13%).

Percentage of Itemized Individual Contributions from Kentucky Compared to Other States

More corporate interests

The money McConnell takes from business interests such as banks, hedge fund managers,

health insurers, lobbyists, and oil companies dominates his campaign money profile.This type

of money peaked in his most recent election in 2008 and is on track to play a large role in his

2014 campaign.

Giving at least $8.7 million in contributions to his campaign committee and leadership PAC over

his career, Wall Street is by far the largest sector of donors to McConnell. Within the finance

sector, his biggest supporters come from the securities and investment industry, followed byreal estate, insurance and commercial bank interests.

11These sectors are represented best in these geographic areas, based on McConnells campaign finance records.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012

KY

DC-MD-VA

NY-CT-NJ

TX


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Business-Labor-Ideological-Other Split Over Time

Total Contributions by Sector

Sector Total

Finance, Insurance & Real Estate $8,712,881

Manufacturing, Sales & Services $4,796,563

Health $4,341,193

Lawyers & Lobbyists $3,195,248

Agribusiness $2,968,881

Energy & Natural Resources $2,917,008

Ideological/Single-Issue $2,648,708

Communications/Electronics $2,042,186

Construction $1,936,677

Transportation $1,701,098

Defense $680,699

Other $632,556

Party Cmtes $154,724

Labor $69,750Joint Candidate Cmtes $11,911

Total Contributions by Industry

Industry Total

1 Securities & Investment $2,463,701

2 Lawyers/Law Firms $2,007,866

3 Health Professionals $1,794,191

4 Real Estate $1,702,792

5 Insurance $1,669,632

6 Oil & Gas $1,336,211

7 Lobbyists $1,187,382

8 Pro-Israel $1,169,435

9 Commercial Banks $1,073,355

10 Hospitals/Nursing Homes $954,850

11 Pharma/Health Products $954,649

12 General Contractors $836,721

13 Misc Manufact. & Distributing $812,662

14 Mining $751,59915 Misc Finance $747,984

16 TV/Movies/Music $694,075

17 Tobacco $648,969

18 Republican/Conservative $630,040

19 Business Services $625,570

20 Electric Utilities $604,799

$0

$2,000,000

$4,000,000

$6,000,000

$8,000,000

$10,000,000

$12,000,000

1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012

Business

Labor

Ideological

Other

*Note that unaffiliated individuals are not included in

the chart above. Such individuals have either not been

coded or could not be readily categorized into sectors,

including those reported as retired, as homemakers, or

without employer or occupation information.

*Note that unaffiliated individuals are not included in the chart above. Such individuals have either not been

coded or could not be readily categorized into sectors, including those reported as retired, as homemakers,

or without employer or occupation information.


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More personal wealth

The value of McConnells personal assets, as reported on his annual personal financial

disclosure, has grown dramatically in recent years, exceeding the average wealth of his fellow

Senators starting in 2008. In 2010, he was the tenth wealthiest Senator, having steadily climbed

the ranks since 2004, when he occupied the 41st

spot. In other words, over the last few years,

while most American families reeled in the aftermath of the financial crisis, McConnell got richand led legislative efforts that created more hardship for middle class families.

Recent Growth in McConnells Personal Wealth

Source: Center for Responsive Politics, Personal Finance Profile for Senator McConnell


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Cases of Obstruction

Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has led a scorched earth policy of filibustering nearly every

bill and nominee that comes before the Senate, imposing an anti-democratic super-majority

requirement to advance any legislation or appointment. This has meant little to no work on a

wide range of lingering problems from low job growth to unwarranted giveaways of tax dollarsto oil companies to the highest rates of inequality since the Gilded Age.

Inaction, frustration, and economic stagnation are part of McConnells political strategy as he

hopes the public will place the blame on President Obama for the lack of progress. According to

his own statements, McConnells number one goal was making Obama a one-term president.

While he didnt succeed in that mission, he did manage to help keep Washington a corporation-

friendly town.

The following eight cases of obstruction span several important policies and highly competent

judicial and administrative nominees. These cases are among the many instances whereMcConnell placed the interests of his big money donors ahead of Kentuckians and everyday

families.

Policy Case 1: Repeal Big Oil Subsidies

On March 29, 2012, the Senate voted 51 in favor and 47 opposed to cut off debate and bring a

final vote on a bill to remove $24 billion in tax breaks and giveaways to the five largest oil

companies in America, some of the most profitable companies in the history of the world.

In most legislatures throughout the world, or indeed most Senates in the history of the United

States, this majority support would mean bill passage and over the next 10 years, $24 billion

that would have gone to some of the largest oil companies would instead be split between

reducing the federal debt and extending incentives for clean energy and energy efficiency.

Instead, due to McConnells intense focus on obstructionist techniques, this vote merely added

one more bill to the pile of legislation blocked by the filibuster.

McConnell took to the Senate floor that day to talk about high gasoline prices, but his stated

interest in getting things done for Americans was belied both by his record of obstruction and

the enormous contributions he takes from the oil and gas industry. In fact, oil and gas interests

have given $1.3 million to McConnells campaign committees and leadership PAC over his

career, a top-10 donor industry for him, despite having almost no presence in Kentucky.

His Big Oil donors are not subtle. On March 26th

, just three days earlier and the very same day

that Senate debate began on the Repeal Big Oil Subsidies Act, McConnell pulled in an

astonishing $131,500 in contributions from oil-related donors in Midland, Texas, the oil

industrys base for extraction in the Permian Basin. It is unclear from expense reports whether


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McConnell himself was able to attend, but its clear that the oil industry has his earand his

vote.

These donors have influence beyond their money, as well. Among the Texas fundraiser

attendees were former Commerce Secretary Donald Evans, who took a bus tour to promote

President George W. Bushs economic policies with McConnells wife, then-Labor SecretaryElaine Chao;

12Miles Boldrick, in whose home Mitt Romney would later spend the night;

13and

Javaid Anwar, who lent Rick Perry the use of his private jet.14

In fact, George W. Bush himself

contributed the legal maximum to McConnell along with his wife ($10,000 total) just five days

later. They listed their address as Midland, Texas rather than their homes in Crawford or Dallas,

raising the possibility that they were involved in hosting the event.

Of course, late March 2012 was not the first or only time McConnell stood up for his financial

backers in the oil industry. Just months before, in December, 2011, McConnell announced he

would hold hostage the extension of the payroll tax cutvital to the middle class during a weak

economyunless a completely unrelated provision approving the Keystone XL pipeline was

included.15

The pipeline was and continues to be a major priority for Big Oil. Incorporating a

broad range of energy-related votes, Oil Change International rates McConnells vote record as

favoring fossil fuel interests 94 percent of the time.16

Policy Case 2: Creating American Jobs and Ending Offshoring

In recent years, as American workers faced record job losses and large companies continued to

move positions abroad, federal policymakers have attempted to incentivize job creation in the

U.S. and close tax loopholes that reward companies for moving their operations overseas.

Among the attempts to eliminate such loopholes was the Creating American Jobs and Ending

Offshoring Act (S.3816), a bill introduced in September 2010 that included ideas Obamaannounced support for in May 2009.

The bill would have 1) granted a two-year payroll tax holiday for every job brought back to the

US, 2) put an end to deductions companies can take when moving operations abroad, and 3)

eliminated deferral of taxes on overseas profits for companies moving overseas. Similar

provisions were originally included in the tax extenders bill (H.R. 4213), debated at length the

summer of 2010. But these provisions were stripped as this Senate bill failed cloture vote after

12Martin Crutsinger, Bush economic team hits the road to promote tax cuts, Kentucky New Era, July 29, 2003.

13 Alex Guillen, Mitt Romney Slept Here, Politico Morning Energy, August 22, 2012.http://www.politico.com/morningenergy/0812/morningenergy566.html14

Matthew Ericson et al., Whos Financing the Super PACs, New York Times, May 7, 2012. Accessed December 18, 2012:

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/01/31/us/politics/super-pac-donors.html?smid=tw-nytimespolitics&seid=auto15

Ben Geman, Senate GOP digs in on Keystone pipeline push, The Hill, December 16, 2011. http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-

wire/e2-wire/199979-senate-gop-digs-in-on-keystone-pipeline-push16

Mitch McConnell Votes, Oil Change International. Accessed December 20, 2012:

http://www.dirtyenergymoney.com/view.php?searchvalue=mcconnell&com=&can=&zip=&search=1&type=search#view=voter

ecord


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cloture vote, only to finally pass with a bare-bones extension of unemployment benefits and

without the measures to bring jobs back from overseas. Provisions similar to the first two were

included in the Bring Jobs Home Act, which also perished by filibuster in July 2012.

After Obama announced his support for these ideas in 2009, McConnell artfully stated I cannot

endorse a plan that gives preferential treatment to foreign companies at the expense of U.S.-based companies and the 52 million people they employ,"

17when in reality it is large American

multinationals that receive preferential treatment at the expense of small American businesses

and American workers.

Unfortunately McConnell helped block all these recent efforts to bring jobs back to the U.S.,

looking out repeatedly for his large corporate donors and opponents of these measures,

including the National Association of Manufacturers and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.18

Companies with key stakes in these policies understand how important it is to invest in

McConnells fundraising committees. Taking the companies that lobbied on S.3816 in 2010 as a

sample, we find that McConnell raised close to $1 million from executives and PACs associated

with 37 of the companies that reported lobbying on the bill in at least two of their filings.19

The

largest donor in this group is General Electric (giving at least $174,812 to McConnell over the

years), followed by Microsoft Corp ($100,750), Koch Industries ($85,450), and Exxon Mobil

($74,300). (See Appendix for full list.)

These 37 companies have collectively stashed $445 billion in untaxed profits overseas instead of

using those funds to create jobs in America. GE, Microsoft and Exxon Mobil also stand out in

this regard, with offshore profits of $102 billion, $61 billion, and $74 billion respectively. Other

McConnell donors that lobbied on the issue and sit on large overseas stores of cash include

Johnson & Johnson ($42 billion abroad), IBM ($38 billion abroad), and Hewlett-Packard ($29

billion abroad).

Policy Case 3: DISCLOSE

The DISCLOSE Act is legislation aimed at shedding light on dark money, political spending by

groups not required to disclose their donors, a practice allowed by Supreme Court decisions like

Citizens Unitedand the vagaries of U.S. tax law. Once, Mitch McConnell voiced opinions in

support of the goal of disclosure, saying Public disclosure of campaign contributions and

spending should be expedited so voters can judge for themselves what is appropriate.20

But

that was in 1997.

17Obama Unveils Plan to Close Tax Loopholes, FoxNews.com, May 4, 2009.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/05/04/obama-unveils-plan-close-tax-loopholes/18

Obama Unveils Plan to Close Tax Loopholes, FoxNews.com, May 4, 2009.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/05/04/obama-unveils-plan-close-tax-loopholes/19

Lobbying information is based on an analysis of data provided by the Center for Responsive Politics.20

Editorial: McConnells hypocrisy on campaign disclosure, Lexington Herald-Leader, August 1, 2010.

http://www.kentucky.com/2010/08/01/1372068/mcconnells-hypocrisy-on-campaign.html


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Times have changed and the big money problem has worsened in American politics. Regardless,

McConnell seems less concerned nowadays with voters having information to judge undue

influence for themselves. Today, this very same politician decries the DISCLOSE Act as un-

American and an attempt to identify and punish political enemies.21

Accounts from the Senate make it clear that the blockage of this formerly-bipartisan idea byfilibusters in both 2010 and 2012 is almost solely because of the enormous pressure

22

McConnell put on senators in his caucus to oppose the legislation, even over considerable

objections in private. The bill fell just one vote short of the 60-vote threshold in 2010 and failed

on another party-line vote in 2012.

What could account for the difference between his previous support for transparency and his

now vehement opposition to the DISCLOSE Act? McConnell would have you believe that he is

simply maintaining consistent support of the First Amendment against attempts to impinge on

the freedom of speech. The facts paint a different picture.

First of all, its critical to note that Republicans enjoy a massive partisan advantage in secret

money spent on their behalf, a 5-to-1 advantage in the 2012 elections. So-called social

welfare nonprofit organizations (or 501(c)4s) and trade associations (or 501(c)6s) are not

required to register as political committees with the Federal Election Commission or disclose

their donors. These dark money groups spent $245.4 million benefitting Republicans, dwarfing

the $49.6 million similar groups spent to help Democrats.23

McConnell is the same person who said the top three priorities for building a political party are

money, money, money24

and opportunistically sought to ban contributions by political action

committees (PACs) in 1996, when PACs gave more money to Democrats than Republicans,

without thinking this might violate the First Amendment.25 Even a top Republican aide said in2005 that McConnells opposition to the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform law is not

100 percent principle because [b]ehind closed doors, McConnell's case against the law also

encompassed the practicalthe damage the law does to Republican fundraising.26

21Mitch McConnell, Disclose Act is un-American, USA Today, July 5, 2012.

http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/story/2012-07-05/Disclose-Act-Mitch-McConnell/56046300/1

22Dan Froomkin, Disclose Act Vote Railroaded By Mitch McConnell, Senate Dems Claim, Huffington Post, July 18, 2012.http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/18/disclose-act_n_1683573.html23

Non-committee FEC filers, Sunlight Foundation Reporting Group. Accessed December 17, 2012:

http://reporting.sunlightfoundation.com/outside-spending/noncommittees/24

John Cheves, Price Tag Politics: Senators pet issue: money and the power it buys, Lexington Herald-Leader, October 15,

2006. http://wincoast.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-43005.html25

Campaign Financing: Shaking it Up, PBS News Hour, June 24, 1996.26

Jonathan Allen, McConnell gets ready to step into Frist's shoes: Loyal, understated whip awaits his turn at the summit, The

Hill, Oct. 25, 2005.


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Beyond the partisan advantage dark money grants Republicansincreasing McConnells

chances of becoming majority leaderhe also has personal ties to some of the biggest dark

money groups.

The largest dark money group, Crossroads GPS (Grassroots Policy Strategies), is run by

McConnells former protg, Steven Law. Law says most of what he learned about politics, helearned from McConnell, and it shows. First as a Senate staffer for McConnell, then on his own

helping the U.S. Chamber of Commerce transition to becoming a big political spender and as

head of Crossroads GPS and American Crossroads, Laws career has involved raising enormous

sums of money for political uses.

Crossroads was this past years highest spending dark money group, with $70.6 million in

disclosed spending, and every penny either attacking Democrats or supporting Republicans.

McConnell has returned the favor, speaking at two of the groups fundraising events, and

pressuring members of his caucus who privately support transparency to maintain party-line

opposition to legislation like the DISCLOSE Act that would require Crossroads to disclose its

donors.

With the incredible effort McConnell has put into using every obstruction measure possible to

block the DISCLOSE Act, the failure of Congress to prevent massive amounts of secret money

being spent in the 2012 election can be almost entirely laid at McConnells feet.

Policy Case 4: Employee Free Choice

Though growing inequality is a moral and economic concern in America, Congress has failed to

reinstall policies that could help reverse this trend by strengthening the rights and voices of

workers.27 Academics and policy-makers have argued that restoring balance to the unionelection process through the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) would help rebuild the middle

class. Unfortunately, due in part to the powerful influence of large corporate campaign donors,

McConnell and the Senate effectively blocked EFCA in 2007 and 2009 through the use and

threat of the filibuster.

In March 2007, the House passed EFCA28

before it died by cloture vote in the Senate that

June.29

In March 2009, Senator Ted Kennedy introduced the bill again30

and fellow Senators

spent months trying to amass and maintain 60 votes. In the end, the 60-vote threshold was too

high a barrier to overcome.

27Noah, Timothy, Revive Labors Power, New York Times, October 19, 2012.

http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/10/18/shrink-inequality-to-grow-the-economy/revive-labors-power28

Roll Call Vote 118, H.R. 800, May 7, 2007. http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2007/roll118.xml29

Roll Call Vote 227, H.R. 800, June 26, 2007.

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=110&session=1&vote=0022730

Employee Free Choice Act of 2009, GovTrack. Accessed December 27, 2012:

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/111/s560


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Big corporate interests kept the heat on throughout that time by spending millions on lobbying

and elections. More than 300 companies and trade groups lobbied on the bill in just 2009,

spending upwards of $563 million on lobbying.31

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, whose vice

president for labor policy likened this policy battle to Armageddon,32

spent $123 million

lobbying on this issue. The Chamber also spent at least $17 million in the 2008 election, mostly

through outside spending.

These interests had a friend in McConnell, who warned the bill would fundamentally harm

America.33

Over his career, McConnell has taken at least $3.4 million in campaign

contributions from 150 of the companies and trade groups that lobbied against the Senate

version of the bill (S.560).34

McConnells donors include the PAC and executives of Home Depot,

which have given at least $55,000 to his campaign committee and leadership PAC over the

years, while the company lobbied heavily on the bill, spending $935,000 in 2009. In October

2008, during the lead-up to this policy battle, Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus, who has

personally donated to McConnell, warned that EFCA would mean "the demise of a civilization."

He went on to say that "[i]f a retailer has not gotten involved with this, if he has not spent

money on this election, if he has not sent money to Norm Coleman and these other guys," then

such retailers "should be shot; should be thrown out of their goddamn jobs."35

Fellow retailers who weighed in on the issue included McDonalds, which has given McConnell

at least $32,650, and Wal-Mart, which has given $53,800 and lobbied heavily on the bill. Both

companies have faced recent worker and community protests for better pay and worker rights.

The Associated Builders and Contractors, which has given McConnell $74,250, sent a letter in

April 2009 to every member in Congress stating their opposition, saying there is no room for

compromise and nothing can be done to make this legislation more palatable.36

McConnell

was sympathetic to these concerns and those of the overwhelming number of his campaign

donors who lobbied on this bill. (See Appendix for full list.)

31This amount includes lobbying expenditures for other issues and bills, since lobbying expenditure reports do not allow for

disaggregation of expenditures by issue or bill. Organizations that specified the bill in at least two filings in 2009 were included

in this count.

32 Steven Greenhouse, After Push for Obama, Unions Seek New Rules, New York Times, November 8, 2008.http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/09/us/politics/09labor.html?pagewanted=all33

Amanda Terkel, McConnell: Employee Free Choice Act will fundamentally harm America and Europeanize America.,

ThinkProgress, January 23, 2009. http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2009/01/23/35208/mcconnell-efca/34

Organizations that specified the bill in at least two fi lings in 2009 were included in this count.35

Frank Thomas, It's Time to Give Voters the Liberalism They Want,Wall Street Journal, November 19, 2008.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122705706314639537.html36

Candace Beeke, Associated Builders and Contractors battle Employee Free Choice Act, Houston Business Journal, April 21,

2009. http://blog.mlive.com/westsidestory/2009/04/associated_builders_and_contra.html


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Policy Case 5: Helping Families Save Their Homes

In 2009, one in every four homeowners was underwater, owing more on their mortgages than

their homes were worth37

and more than a million families nationwide had lost their homes the

previous year.38

In Kentucky, the foreclosure rate remained higher than it had been in

decades.39

In April 2009, as the foreclosure crisis escalated, the House passed the Helping Families Save

Their Homes Act,40

which included a key provision to create flexibility for bankruptcy judges to

modify mortgages for homeowners facing foreclosure, the so-called cramdown provision. In

the Senate, despite his efforts, Senator Durbin was not able to garner 60 votes to keep the

cramdown provision in their version of the bill,41

after months of negotiating and working with

banks and Republicans. It was during this process that Durbin noted, with regard to Capitol Hill,

that banks frankly own the place.42

With Wall Street interests topping McConnells donor list with at least $8.7 million, it is fair to

ask whether Wall Street owns Senator McConnell in particular. Some of McConnell top donors

from the finance sector fought against Durbins provision. The American Bankers Association,

which has given at least $85,000 to McConnell over the years, left the negotiating table Durbin

convened43

and spent $8.5 million lobbying against the bill in 2009.44

Other opponents included

the Mortgage Bankers Association ($37,500 in campaign contributions to McConnell) and the

Financial Services Roundtable ($24,000).

The countrys four largest banks stood to lose the most from the cramdown provision, including

billions in outstanding unsecured debt on underwater homes, loans that could be written off

completely by mortgage adjustments.45

The nations largest bank, JPMorgan Chase,46

is also

one of McConnnells biggest donors, giving at least $134,475 over his career.

37Ruth Simon and James Hagerty, One in Four Borrowers Is Underwater, Wall Street Journal, November 24, 2009.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125903489722661849.html38

Chris Palmeri, Over one Million People Lost their Home in 2008, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, January 14, 2009.

http://www.businessweek.com/the_thread/hotproperty/archives/2009/01/over_one_millio.html39

Emily Spurlock, et al. Housing Foreclosures in Kentucky, Kentucky Legislative Research Commission, July 9, 2009, pg. 18.

http://www.lrc.ky.gov/lrcpubs/rr365.pdf40

Roll Call Vote 104, H.R. 1106, March 5, 2009. http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2009/roll104.xml41

Roll Call Vote 174, S.Amdt. 2014 to S. 896, April 30, 2009.

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=111&session=1&vote=0017442

Ryan Grim, Dick Durbin: Banks Frankly Own The Place, Huffington Post, May 30, 2009.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/29/dick-durbin-banks-frankly_n_193010.html43

Ryan Grim, Bankruptcy Bill Watered Down, Still Fiercely Opposed By Banks, Huffington Post, May 28, 2009.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/27/bankruptcy-bill-watered-d_n_191998.html44

This amount includes lobbying expenditures for other issues and bills, since lobbying expenditure reports do not allow for

disaggregation of expenditures by issue or bill.45

Alex Ulam, Why a Mortgage Cramdown Bill Is Still the Best Bet to Save the Economy, The Nation, October 20, 2011.

http://www.thenation.com/article/164096/why-mortgage-cramdown-bill-still-best-bet-save-economy#46

Top 50 Holding Companies Summary Page, U.S. Federal Reserve National Information Center,

http://www.ffiec.gov/nicpubweb/nicweb/Top50Form.aspx


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Nominee Case 1: Jack McConnell

Sen. McConnell has blocked or slowed more than just legislation in the interest of his deep-

pocketed donors. He also has taken the filibustering of judicial and administrative nominees to

new heights.

When John J. Jack McConnell (no relation) was nominated to the District Court of Rhode

Island on March 10, 2010, business and insurance interests mobilized to block the former trial

lawyer from appearing on the bench. Naturally, Mitch McConnell was there to back up his allies

and donors with the very rare step of filibustering a district court nominee, the lowest level

subject to Senate confirmation.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce in many ways led the charge against Jack McConnell, evidently

because of his history representing plaintiffs against big businesses for lawsuits around

asbestos, tobacco, and lead paint. Rhode Island reporters noted the connection behind the

opposition of the countrys largest business trade group and the delays by Senate Republicans,

despite the nomineesbipartisan support from his home state, writing [Jack McConnells]

nomination has been stalled for more than a year for no apparent reason other than that the

U.S. Chamber of Commerce doesnt like the fact that he has made a living suing

businessesthat harm the public.47

When Jack McConnells nomination finally came to the floor for a cloture vote a full 420 days

after he was nominated, Mitch McConnells floor comments gave no reason to doubt the

reporters assertion.The Kentucky Republican specifically noted the U.S. Chambers position on

the nomination while claiming evidence of a persistent hostility to American job creators in

the nominees legal history.48

The business lobby was not opposing Jack McConnell simply for ideological reasons. Many of

Mitch McConnells donors are from the same companies that have had to pay out millions after

lawsuits argued by Jack McConnell or his firm. Attorney McConnells landmark lead paint case,

in which he represented the state of Rhode Island, resulted in $1.7 to $3.4 billion in costs for

Sherwin-Williams, NL Industries, and Millenium Holdings to clean up 240,000 Rhode Island

homes contaminated by their lead paint. NL Industries PAC and employees, as well as those of

its parent company have given $43,755 to McConnell over the years.

Similarly, Georgia-Pacific has been the target of several asbestos lawsuits argued by Motley

Rice, Jack McConnells old law firm. The billionaire Koch brothers who own Georgia-Pacificsparent company, Koch Industries, have immense levels of political influence, funding a vast

network of dark money groups like Americans for Prosperity that has collectively been termed

47Scott MacKay, Isnt it time Jack McConnell gets a Senate vote? NPR, May 3, 2011.

http://wrnipoliticsblog.wordpress.com/2011/05/03/isnt-it-time-jack-mcconnell-gets-a-senate-vote/48

Mitch McConnell, News Release: John McConnell Unfit for a Lifetime Federal Judgeship, May 4, 2011.


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Koch World,49

and the PAC and employees of Georgia-Pacific and Koch Industries poured over

$80,000 into Sen. McConnells coffers.

Another interested party with Sen. McConnells loyalties is the insurance industry. Three

different insurance industry trade groups all signed on to a letter by the U.S. Chamber of

Commerce opposing Jack McConnells nomination to the bench. The insurance industry hasgiven Mitch McConnell $1.7 million, but this amount still pales in comparison to the sums at

stake for insurers in class action lawsuits like the ones Jack McConnell argued.

On May 4, 2011 Jack McConnells nomination finally moved forward via a cloture vote of 63-33

and then was confirmed on a narrower 50-44 basis, reflecting the reluctance of some rank-and-

file Republicans to carry out Mitch McConnells strategy of filibustering even district court

nominees. Still, a similar judicial nominee, Louis Butler, was sunk due to analogous business

opposition stemming from his previous rulings on lead paint and medical malpractice cases.50

Nominee Case 2: CFPB Director

On July 21, 2010, President Obama signed into law the Dodd-Frank Act, the most sweeping

reform of Wall Street since the Great Depression. This came after months of attempts by

Republicans and Wall Street lobbyists to water down the bill and an astounding 10 filibusters on

the bill in the Senate.

Faced with an Act of Congress he could not find the votes to repeal, McConnell and the

Republican minority in the Senate sought to effectively nullify Dodd-Frank through additional

obstruction. A primary tactic was the decision to filibuster any nominee to become director of

the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), regardless of his or her qualifications.

McConnell led 44 Republican senators to write a letter saying that no nominee would getSenate approval until the CFPB was reformed in ways that would destroy its effectiveness.

51

Since the CFPB was designed to protect Americans against the abuses of big banks and

predatory lenders, debilitating the bureau has been and remains a huge priority for the

financial sector and McConnell. Wall Street, incidentally, is the single biggest sector

contributing money to McConnell, who has taken at least $8.7 million from financial interests

over his career.

Even after Obama passed over Elizabeth Warren, a favorite of liberal groups who was strongly

opposed by conservatives, and nominated Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray to be

49Ken Vogel and Tarini Parti, Inside Koch world, Politico, June 15, 2012.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0612/77453.html50

Senate deal cuts Butler from federal judgeship vote, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, December 20, 2010.

http://www.jsonline.com/news/usandworld/112207769.html51

44 U.S. Senators to Obama: No Accountability, No Confirmation, Office of Sen. Richard Shelby, May 5, 2011.

http://shelby.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2011/5/44-u-s-sens-to-obama-no-accountability-no-confirmation


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director of the CFPB in July 2011, Republican obstruction did not let up. Rather than the bureau

beginning in earnest its work of protecting consumers on the scheduled launch date of July 21,

2011, the CFPB sat through months of delays in the Senate waiting for a director, culminating in

a cloture vote for Cordray on December 8, 2011. In the end, the 44 letter signers and one

additional Republican voted against cloture, using the filibuster to block an up-or-down vote on

Cordrays nomination.

McConnell and the rest of his caucus even tried to use a technicality to prevent Obama from

using his recess appointment powers by holding pro forma sessionsessentially a few senators

calling the Senate into session without conducting any significant businessthroughout the

traditional winter recess. Obama called their bluff by installing Cordray on January 4th

,

prompting McConnell to claim that Obama arrogantly circumvented the American people by

'recess' appointing Richard Cordray.52

This came from the same man who had spent the past 18 months trying to subvert the will of

the American people, through their elected representatives, by nullifying a legitimate Act of

Congress he lacked the votes to repeal.

Once Cordray and the CFPB began to conduct business, it was clear why McConnell and his

donors in the banking industry were so keen to impede their work. The first enforcement action

the new agency took was a $210 million settlement with Capital OneMcConnells eighth

largest donor ($121,500)including $150 million in refunds to two million American consumers

on whom Capital One had used deceptive marketing practices. Its probably no coincidence that

over half of the money McConnell received from Capital One, $61,500, came in the year and a

half between the passage of Dodd-Frank and the eventual installment of Richard Cordray.

Similarly, the next action coming out of the CFPB was a $112.5 million settlement withAmerican Express, which has given $69,950 to McConnell. Just like for Capital One, the return

on investment would have been astronomical if McConnells obstruction had succeeded in

saving American Express from paying out millions to customers it had wronged.

After the passage of Dodd-Frank, McConnell was quoted as saying of regulatory agencies that

anything we can do to slow down, deter or impede their ability to engage in this oppressive

overregulation, which is freezing up our economy, would be good for our country.53

Millions of

Americans whove seen compensation for mistreatment by big banks and credit companies

would disagree. But its hard to argue that it would have been good forMcConnells donors.

52Arrogantly Circumventing the American People with an Unprecedented Recess Appointment of an Unaccountable Czar,

Office of Sen. Mitch McConnell, January 4, 2012.53

Peter Schroeder, McConnell: Cutting funds for Dodd-Frank regulatory agencies good for economy, The Hill, June 23, 2011.

http://thehill.com/blogs/on-the-money/banking-financial-institutions/168057-mcconnell-cutting-funds-for-dodd-frank-

agencies-good-for-nation


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Nominee Case 3: Donald Berwick

In April 2010, President Obama nominated Donald Berwick to head the Centers for Medicare

and Medicaid. A pediatrician who worked to improve the management of health care systems,

Berwick was someone hospital executives described as a visionary, inspiring leader.54

Foreseeing a protracted Senate confirmation process and needing an administrator to helpimplement the new health care law, Obama installed him through a recess appointment in July

2010, much to the ire of Senate Republicans. Senator McConnell called the appointment

outrageous.55

Since Berwick could only serve the recess appointment through the end of 2011, Obama re-

nominated him in January 2011. Shortly afterward, Senate Republicans united in expressing

their opposition to Berwicks nomination56

and many vowed to block his confirmation.57

Seeing

the uphill battle, Berwick resigned at the end of his term, a fate that even opponents of Obama-

care found unfortunate, citing the need for more quality thinkers like Berwick in

Washington.58

Berwicks opponents pointed to controversial views such as the ones expressed in these

remarks to the British National Health Service: You could have protected the wealthy and the

well, instead of recognizing that sick people tend to be poorer and that poor people tend to be

sicker, and that any health care funding plan that is just, equitable, civilized, and humane

mustmustredistribute wealth from the richer among us to the poorer and less fortunate.

Excellent healthcare is by definition redistribution.59

As many Americans with private health insurance know from experience, tending to the sick

and the poor is not a priority for health insurance companies, where the drive for profit leads to

lower quality care while executives spend millions on politicians to fight health care reform.Given his leadership role, Senator Mitch McConnell has been a favorite for this interest group,

taking $2.2 million from insurance and HMO companies over the years, including $158,877

from Humanas PAC and executives, $115,700 from Blue Cross Blue Shield and Wellpoint, and

$46,900 from UnitedHealth Group.

54Robert Pear, Obama to Bypass Senate to Name Health Official, New York Times, July 6, 2010.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/07/health/policy/07recess.html55

Mitch McConnell, Senator Mitch McConnell: Americans Deserve to Hear How Donald Berwick Would Ration Medicare, Life

News, July 12, 2010. http://209.157.64.201/focus/f-news/2551328/posts

56Hatch, Enzi Spearhead Letter to President Urging Him to Withdraw Berwick Nomination to Head CMS , Press Release byRanking Member of Senate Committee on Finance (Orrin Hatch), March 3, 2011.

http://www.finance.senate.gov/newsroom/ranking/release/?id=862493f5-d9d7-418e-b47a-17b23142c0b657

Robert Pear, Obamas Pick to Head Medicare and Medicaid Resigns Post, New York Times, November 23, 2011.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/24/health/policy/dr-donald-m-berwick-resigns-as-head-of-medicare-and-medicaid.html58

David Whelan, Donald Berwick's Resignation And The Triumph Of The Bland, Forbes, November 23, 2011.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/davidwhelan/2011/11/23/donald-berwicks-resignation-and-the-triumph-of-the-bland/59

Transcript: Dr. Donald Berwick's Speech To The British National Health Service, Kaiser Health News, July 8, 2010.

http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/Stories/2010/July/07/berwick-british-NHS-speech-transcript.aspx


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Conclusion

Senator Mitch McConnell has led a campaign of obstruction that has debilitated the Senate and

Congress as a whole. Time and again, he has abused Senate rules to block majority-supported

legislation opposed by his deep-pocketed corporate donorseven when it hurts everyday

Kentuckians and Americans.

If the Senate is to return to its function of actually serving the constituents that elected officials

are charged with representing, Senate rules must be reformed such that a small group of

senators cannot exploit the filibuster, secret holds, and other obstructionist techniques to block

the will of the American people.

In addition, Fair Elections reform is vitally needed so that the voices of everyday people are

heard in Washington over the din of lobbyists and high-priced fundraisers. Campaign finance

reform that enables politicians to run a campaign relying on small contributions from their

actual constituents, amplified with a public match, will once again make legislating about doingwhats right for ordinary Americans, not just pleasing a tiny sliver of wealthy donors.


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Methodology

This report was prepared using publicly available data from government, nonprofit, and media

entities to compare Sen. McConnells record of obstruction with the campaign contributions he

has received. Contribution information is based on our analysis of data reported to the Federal

Election Commission, coded by the Center for Responsive Politics, and ultimately accessedthrough bulk downloads provided by the Sunlight Foundation. The available information

includes contributions to McConnells campaign committees since 1989 and contributions to his

leadership PAC, Bluegrass Committee. The totals reflect a partial 2012 cycle, as bulk data were

available through June 30, 2012 at the time of this reports composition. Campaign contribution

data may also be revised over time.

Records of filibusters were prepared through a combination of data from the U.S. Senate on

attempts to end filibusters through motions and votes to invoke cloture, as well as publicly

recorded statements by McConnell and other players. McConnells status as leader of the

Republican caucus and his public statements indicate he has played an enormous role in theuptick in obstruction, even if detailed information on the role specific senators play in filibusters

is not publicly available.

Information on lobbying and lobbying expenditures by various organizations is based on

analysis of data provided by the Center for Responsive Politics, covering quarterly disclosure

filings of lobbying entities with the Senate Office of Public Records.

About Public Campaign Action Fund

Public Campaign Action Fund is a national nonpartisan organization dedicated to passing

comprehensive change in Americas campaign finance laws. The organization works to hold

elected official accountable for opposing reform and for the special favors they do for

contributors. Learn more at www.campaignmoney.org.

For more information, contact Kurt Walters ([email protected]).


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APPENDIX 1 Total Contributions to McConnell from Organizations that Lobbied on S.381660

Client

Total to McConnell

Since 1989

Unrepatriated Offshore

Profits, 2011 (millions)

Lobbying Reports on

Issue/Bill

General Electric $174,812 $102,000 4

Microsoft Corp $100,750 $60,800 4Koch Industries $85,450 N/A 2

Exxon Mobil $74,300 $47,000 4

American Express $69,950 $7,700 4

International Paper $54,500 $4,500 2

National Mining Assn $40,000 N/A 5

AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals $33,700 N/A 2

PhRMA $32,200 N/A 2

Boston Scientific Corp $30,900 $10,346 2

Managed Funds Assn $30,000 N/A 2

Hewlett-Packard $24,750 $29,100 3

Arch Coal $23,000 N/A 2

Google Inc $19,000 $24,800 2

Johnson & Johnson $17,750 $41,600 2

Anadarko Petroleum $17,300 N/A 3

Bristol-Myers Squibb $17,250 $18,500 2

Medtronic Inc $17,000 $17,977 4

Deere & Co $13,000 $2,597 2

DuPont Co $12,500 $13,350 5

Barclays $12,000 N/A 2

American Petroleum Institute $10,800 N/A 4

3M Co $10,750 $7,100 2US Chamber of Commerce $10,548 N/A 2

National Assn of Manufacturers $10,100 N/A 2

PPG Industries $8,500 $2,920 2

Retail Industry Leaders Assn $7,500 N/A 2

Shell Oil $7,100 N/A 2

Emerson $3,500 N/A 2

IBM Corp $2,450 $37,900 5

NCR Corp $2,000 $1,200 4

Texas Instruments $2,000 $4,120 3

Advanced Micro Devices $1,000 $414 2

Ameriprise Financial $1,000 $89 2

CA Inc $1,000 $1,999 3

Convergys Corp $1,000 N/A 2

Technology Assn of America $1,000 N/A 2

TOTAL $980,360 $445,014

60Organizations that reported lobbying on S.3816 in at least 2 lobbying reports in 2010 were included.


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APPENDIX 2 Total Contributions to McConnell from Organizations that Lobbied on S.56061

Client Total to McConnell Since 1989 Lobbying Reports on Issue/Bill

Kindred Healthcare $202,450 4

General Electric $174,812 7Ashland Inc $144,576 9

United Parcel Service $104,321 2

Peabody Energy $99,900 6

Associated Builders & Contractors $74,250 7

National Restaurant Assn $72,218 9

National Assn of Home Builders $70,500 5

Verizon Communications $65,250 8

Verizon Communications $65,250 5

Marathon Oil $64,600 4

National Auto Dealers Assn $62,000 4

Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of Amer. $57,000 4

Home Depot $55,500 16

Wal-Mart Stores $53,800 17

Duke Energy $52,850 5

American Trucking Assns $50,000 4

American Hospital Assn $46,000 17

Comcast Corp $45,500 10

YUM! Brands $44,450 7

Honeywell International $43,500 4

Food Marketing Institute $43,464 5

Federation of American Hospitals $41,500 8Blackstone Group $41,300 2

National Multi Housing Council $41,250 4

National Mining Assn $40,000 6

Devon Energy $39,700 2

MetLife Inc $39,500 3

International Dairy Foods Assn $37,500 3

Natl Assn REITs $37,000 3

Darden Restaurants $36,000 3

Intl. Council of Shopping Cntrs $35,000 10

Associated General Contractors $35,000 4

Lockheed Martin $33,250 7

McDonald's Corp $32,650 5

Boston Scientific Corp $30,900 4

American Health Care Assn $30,250 9

61Organizations that reported lobbying on S.560 in at least 2 lobbying reports in 2009 were included.


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NFIB $29,040 3

FedEx Corp $28,800 5

American Commercial Lines $27,000 4

American Meat Institute $26,000 4

Hewlett-Packard $24,750 4

Occidental Petroleum $24,500 6Real Estate Roundtable $23,500 4

International Franchise Assn $23,100 8

Arch Coal $23,000 10

Ingram Industries $23,000 4

American Bakers Assn $20,875 7

Limited Brands $20,600 4

Nat. Assn of Wholesaler-Distributors $20,375 5

Carlyle Group $19,950 4

American Beverage Assn $19,500 4

Tyson Foods $19,400 6

CR Bard Inc $18,795 2

Intel Corp $18,300 2

American Hotel & Lodging Assn $17,000 6

Target Corp $16,500 9

Marriott International $15,500 8

Dean Foods $15,500 8

CVS/Caremark Corp $15,500 6

National Stone, Sand & Gravel Assn $15,500 4

Mutual of Omaha $15,000 2

Republican Jewish Coalition $14,600 2

National Ready Mixed Concrete Assn $14,500 4American Gaming Assn $14,400 2

Assn of KFC Franchisees $14,000 4

American Rental Assn $13,501 8

Property Casualty Insurers Assn $13,500 11

Williams Companies $13,500 7

Harris Corp $13,500 4

Caterpillar Inc $13,500 2

Deere & Co $13,000 9

Amway/Alticor Inc $12,700 4

National Roofing Contractors Assn $12,500 7

DuPont Co $12,500 5

Intl Foodservice Distributors Assn $12,500 4

Monsanto Co $12,250 11

Livingston Group $12,250 5

Halliburton Co $12,000 9

Goodrich Corp $12,000 4

Allstate Insurance $11,750 3


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3M Co $10,750 4

US Chamber of Commerce $10,548 13

ConAgra Foods $10,500 4

National Assn of Manufacturers $10,100 4

Petroleum Marketers Assn $10,000 4

Associated Equipment Distributors $10,000 3St Jude Medical $10,000 2

Walgreen Co $9,750 3

HealthSouth Corp $9,500 4

Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians $9,000 4

Illinois Tool Works $9,000 4

Brinker International $9,000 4

Assisted Living Fed. of America $9,000 2

Procter & Gamble $8,500 6

PPG Industries $8,500 4

Business Roundtable $8,500 4

American Frozen Food Institute $8,000 9

National Chicken Council $8,000 8

National Retail Federation $8,000 6

Retail Industry Leaders Assn $7,500 7

National Assn of Chain Drug Stores $7,000 4

MeadWestvaco Corp $7,000 4

Dairy Farmers of America $7,000 4

Cummins Inc $7,000 4

Lowe's Companies $6,500 3

Best Buy $6,000 9

Rockwell International $6,000 5Tenet Healthcare $6,000 4

JC Penney $5,250 4

Manufactured Housing Institute $5,200 5

National Utility Contractors Assn $5,000 6

Tyco Electronics $5,000 5

National Council of Farmer Co-Ops $5,000 5

Servicemaster Co $5,000 4

Babcock & Wilcox $5,000 4

CMS Energy $5,000 2

Society of American Florists $4,000 4

Building Owners & Managers Assn $4,000 4

Altec Industries $4,000 4

Emerson $3,500 4

Charter Communications $3,500 4

Assn for Manufacturing Technology $3,500 4

National Funeral Directors Assn $3,500 3

Dunkin' Brands $3,000 7


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Cashing In On Obstruction

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