Today, Todd Akin made clear that he will only show up in Washington for money, but he will not show up in Washington to do his job and vote. After skipping 87.5 percent of House votes since July 1, Todd Akin finally returned to Washington today, for private fundraisers to benefit his Senate campaign.
“It makes perfect sense that the only way to get Todd Akin back in DC is to offer him money,” said Erik Dorey, McCaskill for Missouri spokesman. “At least we know there’s someone who can count on Akin to show up, unfortunately it’s not Missouri’s veterans or working families, but Washington bigwigs with ‘decent’ checks.”
At an event in May 2012, Akin brashly told attendees that the best way to get his attention is to write a decent check to his campaign, and that he remembers who has contributed to his campaign over the last 12 years.
It was reported yesterday that Akin would be in Washington, DC today for a fundraiser on Capitol Hill.
Republican U.S. Senate candidate Todd Akin will be far from the campaign trail in Missouri this week raising campaign cash in Washington, D.C.
Akin has three fundraisers scheduled in an attempt to boost his cash-strapped campaign ahead of the important, expensive final month against his well-funded Democratic rival, incumbent Claire McCaskill. [Missouri News Horizon, 10/2/12]
According to public records, Akin has missed 133 votes since July 1, 2012, which amounts to 87.5 percent of all votes recorded on the House floor. The actual impact of his absence is even greater, because not included in that tally are missed votes and hearings in the committees on which he serves.
During the last three months, Akin failed to vote on several important pieces of legislation including a disaster assistance package that provided $383 million to states like Missouri struggling through a generational drought, a resolution funding the federal government for the remainder of the fiscal year, a bill to prevent student loan interest rates from doubling, and a measure to prevent an increase in estate tax levels for family farmers--an effort that mirrors Claire’s bipartisan efforts in the Senate.
Explaining his abysmal 12.5 percent attendance record for House votes since July, Akin yesterday told the Associated Press that his elected duties as a congressman were less important than his political advancement, while at the same time dismissing the importance of the bills considered in his absence.
The AP’s story highlighted one Missouri veteran’s take on Akin’s missed votes. From the article:
"In the real world, he'd have been fired from a job, and if he was in the military, he'd be considered a deserter," said Bob Murphy, an Army veteran from St. Charles who participated in a conference call organized by McCaskill's campaign.
Akin said he chose to campaign in Missouri instead of casting certain votes in Congress because he said the Democratic-led Senate has refused to act on many of the priorities passed by the Republican-led House
Currently, the bipartisan Farm Bill and Postal Reform are two key examples of legislation that have passed the Senate, but are waiting for House action. As part of the House’s extreme Tea Party faction, Akin has refused to support either measure despite the urgency of their passage for thousands of Missouri families.
In stark contrast, Claire McCaskill hasn’t missed a single Senate vote during that period, and even flew to Washington for 3 a.m. votes immediately after the Missouri Press Association debate on Friday, September 21. During that session, Claire was able to pass three bipartisan bills and fulfill her obligations as Missouri’s Senator.
No comments:
Post a Comment