By ,
Published May 08, 2017
Now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine:
Leader of the PAC
Democrats received more donations from political action committees -- called PACs -- than Republicans this past election cycle, even as Democrats tended to most often point the special interest finger at Republicans.
The Center for Responsive Politics says Democrats' advantage in money from traditional PACs was about 10 times the size of the Republicans' advantage from new so-called "super PACs."
The Washington Examiner's Timothy Carney writes -- "[President Obama has] liked to pose as the scourge of Wall Street, but here again the facts clash with Obama's rhetoric." Democrats had a 27percent advantage in PAC money from the "securities and investment" industry. And as far as lobbyist fundraising goes, Democrats raised nearly double the Republican take.
House Party
At least they'll have a short commute. The Wall Street Journal reports around 15 percent of the incoming freshmen House lawmakers plan to sleep in their congressional offices. Many choose to crash on their couch or bring in a cot to protest fiscal excess. Others just do it to save money.
Indiana Republican Todd Rokita scoffed at paying two grand a-month for a studio apartment. He told the Journal -- quote -- "I'm not doing this as a political stunt. I'm doing this because I'm a cheap (expletive)."
There isn't an official tally of congressional squatters, but estimates range in the dozens.
Wiki Wild
And finally, the newest batch of diplomatic documents from WikiLeaks provides some insight into the lives of various world leaders.
One memo says Libyan President Muammar Qaddafi is obsessively dependent on traveling with a Ukrainian nurse described as a voluptuous blonde because she alone knows his routine.
Another cable notes Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's "frequent late nights and penchant for partying hard." Berlusconi denies throwing wild gatherings, saying he hosts only elegant dinner parties. The Italian leader has in recent months been accused of entertaining escorts and underage girls at his villas.
https://www.foxnews.com/transcript/special-interest-scorecard-from-2010-midterms