Over the weekend state House Speaker Christopher Donovan’s, D-Meriden congressional campaign issued an email to supporters of his bid for the 5th District seat.
The email stated the following (highlights are mine): “Over the last few decades, politics in America has become too much about raising large sums of money from rich, connected insiders, and too little about knocking on our neighbor’s doors and calling our friends up and asking for their support. That’s why Chris led the successful fight to pass landmark campaign finance reform in Connecticut, and why he is fighting to do it in Congress as well. And it’s also why our campaign is about building a grassroots machine that can overcome the expected flood of corporate and special interest money into our race. Chris doesn’t have the same deep pockets and connections to millionaires that some of his opponents do – but he has you. And with your help, Chris outraised both of his Democratic opponents for the second consecutive quarter, and he did it on the strength of more than 1,800 donors with the lowest average donation in the race – just $66!”
Donovan’s campaign issued this message just a few days after our Hearst newspapers reported he has so far received at least $25,000 from lobbyists in Hartford – money he would be unable to accept were he running for his legislative seat under those same state finance laws mentioned above.
Is Donovan breaking any state or federal campaign finance rules? No.
Has Donovan gotten donations from connected insiders who might hope to call in a favor or two while he’s still House Speaker, though reading that campaign email you’d never know it? Yes.
A page from one of Donovan’s campaign finance reports.
Republican Linda McMahon also persists in portraying herself as just folks.
Today’s press release from her U.S. Senate campaign criticizing Democratic President Barack Obama’s budget twice used the term “professional politicians” as in…
1. The professional politicians have made a real mess of our economy.
And…
2. When families sit down to pay their bills each month, they know it’s just not smart to spend more than they are bringing in. Why can’t the professional politicians in Washington understand that?
Linda launched a self-financed $50 million campaign for Senate in September, 2009, resigned from her executive position with the family’s World Wrestling Entertainment company, earned the GOP nomination, lost the 2010 general election, spent the subsequent months testing the waters for a 2012 run, and launched that in September.
It’s accurate to say she’s not a professional congressman because she hasn’t made it to Washington D.C.
But professional politician? She’s spent over two years of her life and a major chunk of change pursuing public office. Linda, you’ve arrived.
Samples of McMahon’s 2010 campaign literature.