Dominion's Dirty Dollars
By: Eric
Published On: 12/26/2007 3:18:12 PM
It will come as no surprise that Dominion Power, arguably Virginia's leading supporter of and contributor to Global Warming, has been busy donating to state politicians. But a quick look at Dominion's recent donations (courtesy of VPAP) reveals some disturbing information if you're a Democrat or Progressive.
We've come to expect Republicans to sell out the environment in favor of business. Hell, a good number of them don't even believe global warming is happening despite almost every expert/scientist saying that it is. So, given that we can't really expect much from Republicans, we have to turn to the Democrats. After all, of the two major political parties, the Democrats are most associated with being pro-environment. Certainly they'll be doing the right thing. They won't be in Dominion's pocket. Right?
Listed below are the top recipients of Dominion's donations to House of Delegates members and/or candidates during the past four years. This list is limited to the 5 figure club - meaning each of these Delegates received an average of at least $2,500 per year from Dominion.
| Delegate | Contribution |
| Hall, Franklin P (D-H069) | $72,250 |
| Armstrong, Ward L (D-H010) | $20,500 |
| Plum, Kenneth R (D-H036) | $18,500 |
| Kilgore, Terry G (R-H001) | $17,500 |
| Moran, Brian J (D-H046) | $15,500 |
| Callahan Jr, Vincent F (R-H034) | $13,500 |
| Hugo, Timothy D (R-H040) | $12,993 |
| Jones, Dwight C (D-H070) | $11,500 |
| Ebbin, Adam (D-H049) | $10,629 |
| Purkey, Harry R (R-H082) | $10,500 |
| Parrish, Harry J (R-H050) | $10,000 |
| Shannon, Stephen (D-H035) | $10,000 |
That is far too much soot-covered money ending up in the hands of supposedly environmentally friendly Democrats.
How about the Senate?
| Senator | Contribution |
| Saslaw, Richard L (D-S035) | $55,000 |
| Stosch, Walter A (R-S012) | $28,000 |
| Potts, H Russell Jr (R-S027) | $23,500 |
| Stolle, Kenneth W (R-S008) | $18,818 |
| Watkins, John C (R-S010) | $15,500 |
| Norment, Thomas K Jr (R-S003) | $14,559 |
| Howell, Janet D (D-S032) | $11,500 |
| Deeds, Creigh (D-S025) | $11,500 |
| Herring, Mark (D-S033) | $11,000 |
| Miller, Yvonne B (D-S005) | $10,143 |
| Wagner, Frank W (R-S007) | $10,000 |
| Cuccinelli, Ken (R-S037) | $10,000 |
Overall, not as bad. But to have a Democrat as the top recipient (by a large margin) in both the House and Senate is unacceptable. Furthermore, last I checked, Senator Saslaw didn't represent a coal dependent district, meaning even that lame excuse for being in their pocket is off the table.
One more try. Let's take a look at the top committee recipients over the past 4 years - limited to those at or over $50,000 in donations.
| Committee | Contribution |
| Dominion Leadership Trust PAC (R-TPAC) | $155,000 |
| Republican Party of Virginia (R-PAC) | $67,500 |
| Democratic Party of Virginia (D-PAC) | $62,850 |
| Commonwealth Victory Fund (D-PAC) | $54,500 |
| Moving Virginia Forward (D-TPAC) | $50,000 |
| House Republican Campaign Committee (R-PAC) | $50,000 |
| One Virginia PAC (D-TPAC) | $50,000 |
| Va Legislative Black Caucus (D-PAC) | $50,000 |
Again, a slight improvement, but nothing to be proud of for the Democrats.
The numbers are not pretty at all, but two particularly disturbing things jump out:
1. Both Creigh Deeds and Brian Moran appear on their respective lists. The Democratic nominee for Governor in 2009 will very likely come down to one of these two men, meaning that no matter who wins our candidate in 2009 will be among the top Dominion recipients in the state. Does that necessarily mean they're environmentally unfriendly? No. But it does mean they aren't putting the environment above a political contribution from a very environmentally unfriendly organization.
2. The Democrats controlled neither the Senate or the House for this entire four year reporting cycle. While we have controlled the Governorship for the past 6 years, it is downright scary that members of the minority party are the top recipients of Dominion donations. I understand how/why Dominion would want to spread their love - they have tons of money so why not cover the bases - but to have top recipients in weakened positions is not a good sign. And it gets worse, because now that we have the Senate, Dominion can walk up and say "Who remembered you when you were down? Why, we did. How about returning some love now that you're in power?". I'm not saying it'll be that easy, but Dominion has some good leverage to use on the new Senate majority party.
Plain and simple, it's coming down to crunch time with Global Warming. We need some real leaders if Virginia is going to do it's share to combat this foe. I'm was expecting, and am still hoping, that that leadership will come from the Democratic party. And the first step to show that environmental leadership is to turn down literally dirty money.
Comments
The Only Thing McCain is Right About (no pun intended) (connie - 12/26/2007 4:33:35 PM)
I am no fan of John McCain, except on the issue of the CRYING need for campaign finance reform. Special Interest Money in the rotten political system is corrupting it to the core at both the federal and state level. Those of us who use our hard earned dollars to make individual campaign contributions to try to "fight back" are like tears in the ocean. When will America wake up and take back their country from those who don't have the interests of the average person at heart? Look at all the money given last year by the Pay Day Lending Industry! This is a crying shame, but Dominion is just playing the game the way the game is played. At least the law now allows the light of disclosure to be shed upon this legal corruption.
It's our elected officials who make the rules on Campaign Finance Reforms....but the foxes are watching the hen house!! With the Supreme Court striking down reasonable efforts at change, the average American is lost in the shuffle.
This is another reason we HAVE TO ELECT A DEMOCRAT in '08, as several "moderate" U.S. Supreme Justices are elderly...The appointments in the coming years are HUGELY important for the prospect of meaningful campaign finance reforms to be upheld.
Not surprised to see Saslaw (TheGreenMiles - 12/26/2007 5:11:29 PM)
I've heard from many people that Sen. Saslaw is virulently anti-environment. Now I know why.
Great post, Eric!
A look at 2005... (elevandoski - 12/26/2007 10:11:17 PM)
Dominion donations to statewide candidates in 2005:
Kilgore $98,741
Kaine $88,000
McDonnell, $45,929
Deeds, $20,000
Bolling, $35,000
Byrne, $1,000?!?!?!
Money to politicians of both parties (Lowell - 12/26/2007 10:16:57 PM)
"It all starts here" -- at Dominion Power.
Good for Leslie (Ben - 12/27/2007 1:19:47 AM)
For turning down their big bucks or for having a legislative record that they didn't want to contribute to.
Exactly! (elevandoski - 12/27/2007 9:15:00 AM)
And notice too how she got bigger $ from Sierra Club and the League of Conservation Voters. We need candidates with the guts to turn down the "insiders club" money. Those serious about developing alternative energy aren't even given a seat at the table as they are prevented from buying influence. This will bear a significant factor in my voting decisions come 2009.
This is why I won't vote for Hillary Clinton (relawson - 12/26/2007 11:06:46 PM)
I refuse to vote for more of the same. Democrats need to clean house. It's a given that many Republicans are corrupt. But Democrats who shamelessly chase corporate money should be punished at the polls.
If you really care about the issue, you'll punish them in the primaries when you have the most power to do something.
Dominion's Power (in the Polls) (jackiehva - 12/27/2007 10:34:29 AM)
Is there a politician who DIDN'T take money from this company? This makes me sick!