Dems bring back fundraising party

16 Dec, 2014 by John Seiler

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When the going gets tough — the tough party.

A series of scandals involving three California state senators forced the cancellation of the Pro Tem Golf fundraiser earlier this year. But it’s hard to keep party animals down. The party is back for 2015. The Times reports:

The event at Torrey Pines golf course in San Diego is the Senate Democrats’ largest political fundraiser for the state party and has been criticized for allowing special interests to mingle with lawmakers in exchange for tickets costing between $15,000 and $65,000 per person.

The indictment of Sen. Leland Yee (D-San Francisco) on public corruption charges a week before this year’s event was to be held led Democratic leaders, including Sen. Kevin De León (D-Los Angeles), to cancel the event. De León is now the Senate president pro tem.

At the time, De León and others cited criminal charges against Yee and Sens. Ronald Calderon and Roderick Wright, saying it was time for a “reality check” and adding that lawmakers “bear a high and profound responsibility to do all we can to repair the excruciating breach of public confidence they [those charged] left behind.”

Hey, in the end it’s all taxpayer money anyway. The Legislature votes the money to the special interests. The special interests donate it to the Democratic Party — or, in other cases, to the Republican Party. Government exists to tell the voters about all the wonderful things being done for them — while lifting their wallets.

Why not just waste more money?

As Bluto says at the beginning of “Animal House”: “Have a beer! Don’t cost nothin’.”