What to do with Marty Meehan's leftover campaign cash

The following is a story that summarizes one reason why our current political system is so awful - big money.

Marty Meehan is a democratic US Congressman representing the fighting 5th District in Massachusetts. He has represented his district since 1993, and ran unopposed in the 2006 general election.

Yesterday, the Politico reported Mr. Meehan is stepping down as congressman to become the chancellor of the University of Massachusetts-Lowell. Well, good for Mr. Meehan; this sounds like an excellent opportunity for him. And by most accounts, Mr. Meehan is regarded as a pretty darn good politician.

However, this happy little story has a side to it that appalls me to the core. It seems that Mr. Meehan has the tidy little sum of $5.2 million in his campaign finance account. Remember, this is a guy who ran unopposed in the last election.

Now, he can't spend the money on himself. But $5.2 million is a LOT of dosh. Apparently he has three choices. He can:

• Give the money to charity
• Save the money for some future run for political office
• Give the money to the democratic party committee

Okay, I just got done throwing up in my mouth, because I'm about 1,000% sure Mr. Meehan won't be donating the money to charity. The amount of money Mr. Meehan has raised is nothing short of obscene. Its not as if, the reeps put forward some charismatic and talented politician to challenge Meehan from one end of his district to the other. Mr. Meehan ran un-freaking-opposed. Why does Mr. Meehan have so much money?

The answer lies perversely in lap of the Supreme Court, which has ruled fairly consistently that money equals political speech. The perversion is Meehan's donars get to fully exercise their free speech by showering the congressman with carts full of cash, but his political opponents get shut out - big time. Since rich folks and corporation and unions are willing to fork over cash to this guy, Mr. Meehan is in his rights to accept the money. (Although this "right" is a perversion, in my opinion).

The loser in this is the average American. (surprise!) You got an issue with some bigwig who wrote a six figure check to Mr. Meehan? Don't expect Mr. Meehan's staff to be of much assistance on that matter.

Sure, you have free speech rights. You can email or call the congressman. But, you sure do NOT have the bullhorn or the bully pulpit. That's too bad, you can't afford it. Your speech isn't as valuable as Mr. Meehan's campaign donars.

I can't say that I have the comprehensive answer to this problem, but I do know I strongly favor taxpayer funded elections. Arizona's plan seems to work quite well. I will have to research that and post on it in the future. In the meantime, I invite your readers to post your opinions on campaign cash.

Larry King Asks A Question

Its a good one - one I've often wondered myself. The question was posed to Nancy Pelosi last night:

President Johnson, toward the end of Vietnam, he didn't run for reelection, exhibited extreme torture himself. You see it in all the tapes that have been released, the look on his face. And he died soon after leaving office.

Why do you think this president doesn't appear to exhibit that kind of pain over all this public opinion against?

Why indeed? Pelosi's answer is really unimportant.

My brother-in-law

My brother-in-law lives in Orange County (California). My wife and I helped him out by loaning him $$ for a down payment two years ago on his first house. We were very happy to help him out, while karmically repaying my deceased grandmother who did us the same favor over a decade ago.

Now, he's all antsy to move out of his home and go back to the much trendier town (where he used to rent). His real estate buddy has found a "great deal" on an ocean front house that's going for a little over a million.

Of course, my brother-in-law thinks he has to have this house. He even had the chutzpah to ask my wife for $200K (Like we have $200 fucking K laying around just waiting for the moment he has some boffo investment idea), not even bothering to mention the $$ we loaned him to begin with. He claims he can afford an $800K mortgage, but is "uncomfortable" with that amount. If we loan him the $200K he can manage with a $600K mortgage. And this is a "great deal" that we can't miss out on because ocean view homes in Laguna Beach are hot, hot, hot! Whatever.

I am looking forward to breaking the news to him that his "uncomfortableness" is what the rest of us euphemistically call, "I can't fucking afford that million dollar house." What is it with this attitude? Sure its a great deal. There are all sorts of great deals out there. But what is the point of even considering this you can't afford it to begin with? I sure don't get all wigged out when a Gulfstream goes for a song.

Plus, I want my god damned down payment back, oh ungrateful cur of a brother-in-law. I have a bad feeling he is going to hit up his parents for the money. His parents don't have that kind of dosh, but I can see them taking out mortgage, or some other similarly stupid plan to make sure baby son gets what he wants.

Yes, I am pissed at my stupid consumerist brother-in-law (I think you've got the crux of that biscuit). But his attitude is depressingly familiar in many parts of California - especially including the supposedly Bohemian San Francisco Bay Area.

Our hyper-consumer society feels way out of control. Yes, its planned obsolescence; yes its the god-awful packaging; but above all, its this insane idea that we all somehow innately deserve to drive top of the line Beemers, use fizzy glacier water for rinsing toothpaste out of our mouths, and must live in million dollar homes with mortgages bigger than the cliffs they sit on.

Just don't ask me to pay the bills for someone else's frill's, err needs.

Things that piss me off

I've started a list of things that piss me off. George "Dubya" Bush certainly tops the list. I've usually referred to him as Dubya, but I will honor the late, great Molly Ivins and simply call him the Shrub for the next month.

Perhaps I will start of list list of Shrub-isms that have really pissed me off over the years. Certainly, "bring 'em on," has to top the list. I believe that even this heartless cretin wants a mulligan on that one.

I'll spend some time researching some Bushisms - and I'm not even going to bother with his mangling of the English language. That's quite unfair (plus, I manage to misspeak often enough mysefl). No, I want to concentrate on matters of substance - like the gratitious lies to the American public before the 2006 mid-term elections about not shit-canning Rummy (Rummy was summarily dismissed one day after the election).