Reed and his campaign contributions

Here's the Cliff Notes' version of today's John Mulligan story about Senator Jack Reed and the big chunk of money he has taken from the fiscal sector, America's favorite new public enemy:

1. Jack Reed, RI's popular senator, accepts special interest money.

The financial sector accounts for more than $1 million of the $4.45 million that Reed has amassed for his campaign for a third six-year term in the Senate, according to compilations by independent watchdog groups.

2. Accepting beaucoup campaign bucks is the norm in the US Senate, where not doing so can be potentially fatal to your political career.

[Jennifer] Duffy, who handicaps Senate races for The Cook Political Report, said her organization automatically puts the tag “vulnerable” on any incumbent senator who has “less than $1 million in the bank” for an upcoming election. To illustrate the phenomenon of the “self-funding” challenger, Duffy and [Darrell] West both pointed to New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine, a former chief executive of the Wall Street firm Goldman Sachs, who spent more than $60 million of his own money to win a New Jersey Senate seat in 2000.

3. Accepting some quantity of special interest money doesn't in itself translate into a quid pro quo or mean that the recipient is in an ethical conflict.

Reed ranks 10th among all 535 members of the House and Senate in his $78,250 fundraising total since 1989 from the campaign arms of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, their employees and family of employees. But Reed pointed to several initiatives that Fannie and Freddie have vigorously opposed. “The ultimate test for conflict of interest is in the voting record,” said West, a former Brown University political scientist. “In Reed’s case there are many cases where he voted in consumers’ interests” and against the interests of contributors.

I covered some of this ground in my look at Senator Reed in August:

In the realm of Rhode Island politics, there’s no doubt that Reed is a high-flier; the senator has spent $1.7 million from his campaign fund since 2003, according to the Center for Responsive Politics (opensecrets.org).While individual contributions represent 57 percent of his fundraising total over the last five years, according to the CRP, his top five contributors by industry over that period are as follow: Lawyers/Law Firms ($428,856); Securities & Investments ($348,038); Real Estate ($206,550); Insurance $189,850); and Commercial Banks ($161,849).

Asked about the influence of campaign contributions, Reed, who sits on the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, says he tries to make good decisions based on the substance of an issue.

Part of the bottom line: money remains the mother's milk of politics, and challengers to Reed, Jim Langevin, Patrick Kennedy and other high-profile Rhode Island Democrats won't have much of a shot until they can acquire the same kind of financial support.