Ezra Klein: Why Does Max Baucus Take This Money?

[flpoljunkie]

07/21/2009



Why Does Max Baucus Take This Money?

Dan Eggen has a nice piece* today tracking the money flowing from the health-care industry to the senators tasked with reforming and regulating it. The lead recipient of industry dollars? Max Baucus. Charlie Rangel, Chuck Grassley, and Dave Camp have been throwing successful fundraisers as well.

Does all this money influence Baucus's decision-making? Of course not, says spokesman Tyler Matsdorf. Baucus "is only driven by one thing: what is right for Montana and the country." That's two things, but so be it.

*http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/20/AR2009072003363.html?hpid=topnews

Grant Matsdorf's premise for a moment. Imagine that Baucus is, at best, bemused by the lobbyists and corporate chieftains autographing checks in a futile effort to purchase his affections. Why let them? Baucus is from Montana. It's one of the smallest states in the country. It has a cheap media market. And Baucus -- who faced no serious competition in his last campaign -- isn't up for reelection until 2014.

Baucus could have shut off his fundraising operation and avoided the appearance of any and all impropriety. Instead, on June 10, he held his "annual fly-fishing and golfing weekend in Big Sky, Mont., for a minimum donation of $2,500." Sometime this month he'll preside over "Camp Baucus," a "trip for the whole family" that touts horseback riding and hiking on the list of activities. The problem with this is not that it necessarily influences Baucus's thinking on health-care reform. It's that all this industry money reduces his credibility to make necessary concessions and hard decisions. And there's no reason for it. He doesn't need the money.

Photo credit: Melina Mara -- The Washington Post.

By Ezra Klein

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-klein/2009/07/max_baucuss_money.html

[fadedrose]

1. Call him and ask him...

[phone] (from MT) or [phone].

I called the 800 number and his office answered....also sent an email.

[Canuckistanian]

2. My question would be - why are insurance companies targeting Baucus?

I think it's specifically BECAUSE he's chair of the Finance committee.

They KNEW any plan would have to make it out of his committee - the health care industry doesn't give a flying fuck where he comes from.