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Edwards Camp Attacks Hillary Over Fundraiserby Josh Gerstein
The gloves are starting to come off in the Democratic presidential race. Senator Clinton is facing an unusually harsh and direct attack from the camp of John Edwards over a fund-raiser she is holding today at which at least ten members of Congress are scheduled to have lunch with donors and then meet with them in "issues breakout" sessions. Tickets start at $1,000. A senior adviser to Mr. Edwards, Joseph Trippi, sent a mass e-mail this morning describing the event as sickening, and an example of the "rigged game" in Washington.Mr. Trippi charged that the event is for "lobbyists with an interest in homeland security" and that some of the participants are "House Committee Chairs." "That no one in the Clinton campaign--including the candidate--found anything wrong with holding this fundraiser is an indication of just how bad things have gotten in Washington--because there isn't an American outside of Washington who would not be sickened by it," Mr. Trippi huffed. The New York Sun has obtained an invite to the event, which is taking place at the DC office of a prominent law firm, Jones Day. None of ten House members on the invite, namely Henry Cuellar, Jane Harman, Sheila Jackson-Lee, Jim Langevin, Nita Lowey, Kendrick Meek, Jerry Nadler, Dutch Ruppersberger, Joe Sestak, and Ellen Tauscher, are committee chairs, but several chair subcommittees of the House's Homeland Security panel. The attack dovetails with Mr. Edwards's longstanding challenge to Mrs. Clinton and Senator Obama to reject all donations from lobbyists. It also pokes at Mrs. Clinton's fundraising ethics, which are already a bit sore in the wake of disclosures about $850,000 raised by a fugitive donor with nebulous business dealings, Norman Hsu. We've asked for and are awaiting a reply to Mr. Trippi from the Clinton camp. We also wonder if Mr. Edwards is as squeakly clean here as his team is suggesting. Has he really never hosted a fund-raiser where donors were promised access to talk about specific issues? Is it much worse to take money from and chat with a lobbyists than to take money from and chat with a corporate executive? Full text of the Trippi missive follows: Dear ... If you want to know why we need change in Washington-and I mean real change, not just trading corporate Republican insiders with corporate Democratic insiders-then just look at Senator Clinton's schedule for today. Today at noon, Hillary Clinton will be hosting a fundraiser in Washington, D.C. for a select group of lobbyists with an interest in homeland security. Tickets for the Clinton fundraiser are $1,000 a ticket and $25,000 per bundler. And for that money you get more than a meal-you get to attend one-hour breakout sessions in four different areas of homeland security that will include House Committee Chairs and members of Congress who sit on the very committees that will be voting on homeland security legislation. The American people know that the system in Washington has become corroded and corrupt-that the nation's capital is awash in campaign money from lobbyists seeking to gain influence to impact legislation. Yet too many in office have fallen under the spell of campaign money at any cost-and do not see that when they defend the system, they are protecting those that have rigged the game that puts corporate profits ahead of the interests of working Americans. To truly end that game, it's going to take more than a change of heart from other candidates: it's going to take thousands of committed Americans like you who are willing to take on the powerful interests dollar for dollar to elect a president like John Edwards-who has never taken a dime from any Washington lobbyist, and never will. You may not have $1,000, but your $25, $50 or $100 contribution today-when combined with the contributions of thousands of others who are replying to this email right now-can send a powerful message to all of Washington that the days of trading special interest contributions for government access are numbered: Today's Clinton fundraising event is a "poster child" for what is wrong with Washington and what should never happen again with a candidate running for the highest office in the land. That no one in the Clinton campaign-including the candidate-found anything wrong with holding this fundraiser is an indication of just how bad things have gotten in Washington-because there isn't an American outside of Washington who would not be sickened by it. Just last month, John Edwards asked Senator Clinton to join him in taking the Democratic Party on the first step towards real reform-to become the first party to refuse and reject the money of Washington lobbyists. Senator Clinton refused to stand up to the lobbyist game. But you can send a message today to all of those in Washington that it's time for all Democrats to stop playing this rigged game by contributing what you can today: As John said last month when he challenged all Democrats to reject lobbyist money, we cannot point a finger at anyone in either party for what they did yesterday-or even today-but we can today as a party stop the game, and say once and for all to all Washington lobbyists: your money is no good here anymore. Help send that message by contributing any amount you can afford to give today:Thank you for all you do. --Joe Trippi Senior Advisor, John Edwards for President September 18, 2007Related Topics: Dem Primary |
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