Dems Who Flipped On FISA Immunity See More Telecom Cash

Does this really surprise anyone? Nonetheless, I feel obligated to get this information out in the hope that at the very least, voters will hold these Democrats responsible for their cowardly "shift" from protecting the constitution and the people of this country, to protecting this Administration and the Telecom industry.

It goes without saying that the Republicans are in a league of their own on this issue...in near UNANIMOUS support for this FISA abomination.

So, here's the latest data on the telecom's pay off of key Democrats who "flipped" positions. CBS News reports:

The 94 Democrats who changed their positions received on average $8,359 in contributions from Verizon, AT&T and Sprint from January, 2005, to March, 2008, according to the analysis by MAPLight, a nonpartisan organization that tracks the connection between campaign contributions and legislative outcomes.

Retroactive immunity could squash about 40 lawsuits pending against telecommunication companies that helped the government monitor the telecommunications traffic of Americans without warrants. The telecom industry has lobbied hard to insure that the provision is included in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act update Congress is currently considering.

...

The 116 Democrats who remained opposed to telecom immunity received an average of $4,987 from the telecoms during the three-year period, the analysis showed...The members who voted yes on June 20 received, on average, $9,659 from the big three phone companies while those who opposed the bill received an average of $4,810, MAPLight found.

If only us civil liberties folks could just payoff these legislators in a similar way? Can you imagine: "Good evening Congressman, while I know that you pledged an OATH to protect the Constitution when you became an elected representative, here's $100,000 for your campaign from (put in group name here) to keep that oath and take the side of the 4th Amendment over the Telecoms. Thanks."

One can dream...:)