The Hill reports on something that I thought probably would not happen.
The senior Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee, Thad Cochran, will soon announce whether he will retire from the upper chamber, a decision that could further shake up a powerful panel and even give Democrats hope of picking up a seat in the GOP stronghold of Mississippi.
Cochran says he will make an announcement after Mississippi’s statewide elections, which are on Nov. 6.
Before I get to the meat of this article I want to point out something about the Senate Appropriations Committee. Here’s a list of the Republicans on the committee, in order of seniority.
Sen. Thad Cochran (REP-MS)- possibly retiring.
Sen. Ted Stevens (REP-AK)- scandal plagued, possibly retiring, possibly arrested.
Sen. Arlen Specter (REP-PA)- stands to take over as Ranking Member.
Sen. Pete Domenici (REP-NM)- scandal plagued, retiring.
Sen. Christopher Bond (REP-MO)- 2nd rank in leadership.
Sen. Mitch McConnell (REP-KY)- Minority Leader, will face tough reelection challenge.
Sen. Richard Shelby (REP-AL)- former Democrat.
Sen. Judd Gregg (REP-NH)- up for re-election in 2010.
Sen. Robert Bennett (REP-UT)- 74 years old.
Sen. Larry Craig (REP-ID)- scandal plagued, retiring.
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (REP-TX)- probably will step down in 2010 to run for governor.
Sen. Sam Brownback (REP-KS)- will not run for reelection in 2010.
Sen. Wayne Allard (REP-CO)- retiring.
Sen. Lamar Alexander (REP-TN)- up for re-election in 2008.
Your first reaction might be to relish the decimation of GOP power on this most powerful of committees. But, The Hill has a more interesting reaction.
Losing some, if not all of those Republicans, will intensify an intra-conference race next Congress for seats on the panel that controls the purse strings of the federal government. At the very least, it will significantly affect the defense industry, which has spent years fundraising and developing close ties with most of those Republicans, including Cochran…
…The possible retirement of Cochran could also have major repercussions for the defense industry, which has invested time building strong relationship with him and other veteran defense appropriators, including Domenici, McConnell, Stevens and Hutchison.
Cochran has been a stalwart supporter of the Navy’s shipbuilding programs, while Stevens has been one of the biggest proponents of the Air Force and its multibillion-dollar programs, such as Lockheed Martin’s F-22 Raptor and the Joint Strike Fighter. Hutchison has shown her support for the Air Force as well as military construction, while Domenici has been a strong supporter of nuclear energy and military laboratories.
“Democrat or Republican, nothing replaces seniority in these committees,” said Keith Ashdown of Taxpayers for Common Sense.
You rarely see things put quite so nakedly. The Defense Industry is losing influence? Their senators are being decimated? Let’s see how it works.
Over the past 18 years, Cochran received a total of $279,986 from the defense industry, with Northrop Grumman — which builds ships in Mississippi — being one of his top contributors. Northrop Grumman donated more than $33,000 over the years to the senator’s coffers, while Lockheed Martin and Raytheon donated more than $20,000.
In the fiscal 2008 defense funding bill, Cochran secured $76.5 million in individual earmarks and nearly another $75 million with Mississippi’s junior GOP Sen. Trent Lott.
So, the Navy owns Cochran. Who does the Air Force own?
Stevens has received more than $716,375 from the defense industry since 1989, according to data compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics. Boeing alone contributed at least $104,600 to the senator’s campaign over the years.
How about the nuclear weapons industry?
…Domenici has been a strong supporter of nuclear energy and military laboratories.
…The defense sector contributed over $400,000 to Domenici since 1989, mostly from defense political action committees. Defense giants Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman have been some of his top contributors, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
And Hutchison?
Hutchison has shown her support for the Air Force as well as military construction…
While Hutchison received a fair amount of her campaign money from the finance and insurance industry, she also has enjoyed strong support from the defense industry, which poured about $290,000 into her coffers.
Why our defense industry is free to pour hundreds of thousands of dollars into these campaigns is a question at the heart of our problems as a nation. We want a strong defense. But, do we realize how corrupting this system is? Look at the list of Republicans on this committee. Look at how corrupt they are. Is this the inevitable price we pay for how our government is set up?
I worry about the Democrats on this committee. So far, there isn’t any whiff of corruption from the members, but we can be sure that Raytheon and Boeing will be knocking ever more urgently on the doors of the Democrats. That’s what they do, and that is how the whole tragi-comic farce perpetuates itself down through the ages.