MPAA threat sparks White House petition for bribery probe

[FarCenter]

Chris Dodd, ex–US senator and current CEO of the Motion Picture Ass. of America, may face a White House investigation after he made an extraordinary outburst that appeared to threaten politicians who had the audacity to take the entertainment industry’s money and then abandon SOPA/PIPA online-piracy legislation.

“Those who count on quote ‘Hollywood’ for support need to understand that this industry is watching very carefully who’s going to stand up for them when their job is at stake," Dodd told Fox News. "Don’t ask me to write a check for you when you think your job is at risk and then don’t pay any attention to me when my job is at stake.”

The comments caused a huge stir, and prompted a petition, hosted on the White House's "We the People" opinion-seeking site, that calls for an investigation of the MPAA on bribery charges.

...

Dodd may have thought he was among friends on Rupert Murdoch’s “Fair and Balanced” Fox network, or could just have been angry at the temporary hold put on the legislation, but it’s highly unusual for anyone in his position to openly acknowledge the way the US political system works. Companies and individuals who "donate" to US lawmakers usually express the convenient fiction that their financial contributions are expressions of support for a candidate, and not attempts to bribe them on specific issues.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/01/23/mpaa_bribery_petition_white_house/

[msongs]

1. too bad little doddy wasn't so tough against connecticut insurance/banks while senator nt

[FarCenter]

3. Dodd is the same as he was -- only now the media moguls are paying him, not the bankers and insurers

[unblock]

2. oh dear, did someone say the emperor has no clothes?

honestly, i had no idea campaign contributions had anything remotely to do with bribery.

in fact, the supreme court recently insisted that boatload of money in politics doesn't even create the appearance of any bribery or impropriety.

hmm, i was gonna end with a sarcasm smiley, but after that last sentence i think i'll end with:

[FarCenter]

4. It's hard to believe that Senator Dodd believes that bought politicians stay bought

"if you can't eat their food, drink their whiskey, screw their women and vote against them in the morning, you don't belong in the legislature"