President Bush brought Ken Tomlinson in as his broadcasting czar with a mandate to rid public airwaves of perceived liberal bias at PBS, the home of Frontline, Sesame Street, Nova, and (when Tomlinson came on board) Bill Moyers. Now, having already been canned for improprieties in that witch hunt, he is under investigation for alleged misdoings while holding a second administration post.  Among other things, he is being investigated for using his office to oversee a stable of racehorses named after Afghan rebels, as well as more banal corruption and self-dealing, including improperly putting a friend on the payroll, repeatedly tasking government employees to run personal errands, and over-billing his hours to the government. Due to a lack of press coverage, few Americans know about any of this – nor how it is part of a larger pattern of cronyism, self-dealing and flat-out madness in this administration.
 

Though they publicly bemoan the “culture of corruption,” Democratic leaders and operatives privately acknowledge that they see no means of regaining power without cozying up to the real “special interests.” And so, albeit to a lesser extent than the republicans who now control all branches of the federal government, the would-be reformers find themselves fighting the quicksand of corporate entanglements.

Though they profess a need for campaign finance reform and other policies that prioritize the common good, many key figures in the Democratic pantheon personally earn a living helping corporate interests advance the very causes that their party publicly deplores.

A new study by the Real News Project, a nonprofit noncommercial investigative reporting entity I founded, shows the extent of the problem. Examining 25 key Democratic consultants, advertising and public relations execs and lobbyists, we discovered a veritable witches’ brew of odious agendas…….
 

As the nation gears up for a battle over control of Congress this year and for the presidency in two years, there will be much effort to differentiate the two dominant parties. Less likely to be discussed are the ways in which the parties are alike.  A new report from the Real News Project (www.realnews.org) examines the work performed by key Democratic Party operatives who earn their “real money” helping corporations exert influence in Washington. The report raises questions about conflicts of interest that have so far escaped public attention.