In the post below I suggest that legislators should not vote on bills that directly affect groups that have given them money. This, of course, is a pipe dream. Even if such a law were passed lobbyists would simply find other ways to “support” their targeted candidate. CSX, for example, gave $25,000 not to Representative Corrine Brown, but to Edward Waters College, her faux-alma mater. Edward Waters College awarded Representative Brown an honorary law degree, and has been rewarded with millions of dollars in earmarks. Brown’s daughter, Shantrel Brown-Fields, is a congressional lobbyist and represents Edward Waters College as one of her clients.
In March the president of CSX made a $1 million donation to Edward Waters College.
Now, as I mentioned below, it may be that all of this is above-board and good-hearted gift-giving. But, it would feel a lot better if Representative Brown in her capacity as chair of the House Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials, didn’t immediately call a hearing to investigate hedge fund investors trying to remove five members of CSX’s corporate board.
[...] own Corrine Brown has a similar relationship with CSX. “CSX, for example, gave $25,000 not to Representative Corrine Brown, but to Edward [...]