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From the House to the Senate, Blunt will remain corrupt and arrogant.

Missouri’s biggest embarrassment is Senator Roy Blunt.
To make matters worse, he endorsed Romney. If the presidential hopeful is hoping that will bring him votes, he may need to rethink. Having Roy Blunt endorse you isn’t quiet the same as having a real leader and honest man stand behind your campaign. In fact if Blunt is behind you, check your wallet.
He has a history of doing little for those in the rural areas he supposedly represents, while lining his pockets (and his son’s) with money from lobbyists – he’ll even bed one if it makes him richer.
Blunt is, without a doubt, the worse possible senator, and given the current group in Washington, D.C., that’s saying a lot.
I know many of you in the Show-Me State, or as Blunt likes to think of it the Elect-Me anyway state, will believe I don’t like Roy. Well, that’s true, but then again I’m  not too fond of any potential criminal who gets rich on the backs of working people, a thing Blunt does with relish.

Here’s some history on Missouri’s newest Senator. Perhaps a review of history will lead to voters finally understanding just how bad a representative this guy is:

“A judge has ordered U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay to serve three years in prison for his role in a scheme to illegally funnel corporate money to Texas candidates in 2002. The sentence comes after a jury in November convicted DeLay on charges of money laundering and conspiracy to commit money laundering. DeLay was once one of the most powerful men in U.S. politics, ascending to the No. 2 job in the House of Representatives.”

As most readers know, DeLay and Sen. Roy Blunt were extremely close when they were calling the shots in the U.S. House in the mid-2000′s. After DeLay stepped down, Blunt made a $20,000 donation to his legal defense fund, the largest individual donation on record (at the time, anyway).

When DeLay was first charged with crimes in September 2005, Blunt expressed “great regret that Tom DeLay has had to go through what he’s going through right now.”  In Blunt’s mind, DeLay hadn’t broken the law — he was just targeted by prosecutors “because of his effectiveness as a leader.”  Watch it:

For the last 14 years, Rep. Blunt has served in the U.S. House of Representatives in the state’s 7th congressional district. As a member of Congress, Rep. Blunt came under fire for a variety of issues including employing the same corrupt tactics that forced his mentor, former Texas Rep. Tom DeLay, to resign. Rep. Blunt’s ethical issues were documented in CREW’s 2006 report on the most corrupt members of Congress.

In 2003, Rep. Blunt divorced his wife of 31 years to marry Philip Morris (now Altria) lobbyist Abigail Perlman. Before it was known publicly that Rep. Blunt and Ms. Perlman were dating – and only hours after Rep. Blunt assumed the role of Majority Whip – he tried to secretly insert a provision into Homeland Security legislation that would have benefited Philip Morris, at the expense of competitors. Notably, Philip Morris/Altria and its subsidiaries contributed at least $217,000 to campaign committees connected to Rep. Blunt from 1996 to 2006.

Also in 2003, Rep. Blunt helped his son, Andrew Blunt, by inserting a provision into the $79 billion emergency appropriation for the war in Iraq to benefit U.S. shippers like United Parcel Service, Inc. and FedEx Corp. Andrew Blunt lobbied on behalf of UPS in Missouri, and UPS and FedEx contributed at least $58,000 to Rep. Blunt from 2001 to 2006.

Family connections have also helped another of Rep. Blunt’s sons, former Missouri Governor Matt Blunt. Gov. Blunt received campaign contributions from nearly three dozen influential Missouri lobbyists and lawyers when he ran for governor of Missouri in 2004, half of whom had provided financial support to his father. Earlier in 2000, when Matt Blunt was running for Secretary of State, Rep. Blunt was involved in an apparent scheme, along with Rep. DeLay, to funnel money through a local party committee into Matt Blunt’s campaign committee.Rep. Blunt and his staff had close connections to convicted former lobbyist Jack Abramoff. In June 2003, Mr. Abramoff persuaded then-Majority Leader DeLay to organize a letter, co-signed by then-Speaker Dennis Hastert, then-Whip Blunt, and then-Deputy Whip Eric Cantor, which endorsed a view of gambling law benefitting Mr. Abramoff’s client, the Louisiana Coushatta, by blocking gambling competition by another tribe. Mr. Abramoff had donated $8,500 to Rep. Blunt’s leadership PAC, Rely on Your Beliefs.
Washington Post, 5/17/05: House Majority Whip Exerts Influence by Way of K Street
“Blunt’s organization in scope has begun to rival “DeLay Inc.” — the political fundraising committees, extensive favor-giving and alliances with Republican lobbyists that the majority leader has used to become one of the most influential leaders in memory.”
New York Times, 11/21/06: “Same Old Party”
“Roy Blunt embodies the insidious, half-legal corruption that has permeated the G.O.P. majority since 1995. Blunt’s election as minority whip, by a 137-to-57 margin, was a defiant Republican rejection of calls to clean up their act. Warnings by Blunt’s challenger, John Shadegg of Arizona — “We ceded our reform-minded principles in exchange for a …tighter grip on power” — went unheeded.”
The New Republic, 8/7/06: “Arm candy, Beltway-style”
“Since his 1996 election, Blunt’s swift rise in the House has been credited to his close ties to K Street–ties undoubtedly strengthened by his friendly relations with the go-to gal for Altria, which just so happens to be one of Blunt’s top campaign contributors. Perlman, meanwhile, could not have asked for a more energetic champion of her employer’s interests than her congressional beau.”
The Star, 11/29/02: “Blunt’s elevation to majority whip is proof of insider power”
“His uncontested election this month as majority whip after just three terms shows he has mastered the game. The whip is the third-highest position in the House GOP leadership behind Speaker Dennis Hastert and newly elected Majority Leader Tom DeLay. As such, Blunt is part of the Republican triumvirate that controls the ebb and flow of business in the often-fractious House of Representatives…’There’s nothing that happens in Congress that Roy Blunt isn’t a major architect of,’ said White House Political Director Ken Mehlman.”
Washington Post, 1/11/06: “Lobbying Colors GOP Leadership Contest; Rivals for DeLay Post No Strangers to K St.”
“The annual vacation, dubbed a “boys’ trip” by detractors, points to an issue underlying the current House leadership race: Both Boehner and his rival for majority leader, Rep. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), have extensive ties to the same K Street lobbying world that stained DeLay’s reputation and spawned the Abramoff corruption scandal.”
NY Times, 10/9/05: “When Lawmaking and Lobbying Are All in the Family”
” Blunt’s family ties have raised anew the questions that have been kicked around Washington for years about the propriety of making the business of government a family business.”
The Hill, 10/1/03: “House Majority Whip Roy Blunt has had setbacks in politics and his domestic life, but he is still near the top of the greasy pole”
“The Post story reverberated around Capitol Hill, and, like his 1992 bid to become Missouri’s governor, it revealed Blunt’s normally well-concealed ambition and comfort with hardball politics.”
The Star, 2/13/09: “Is Blunt the BEST Senate candidate?”
“Blunt, though, is D.C. personified. Not only does he have more K Street ties than Mark Shale and Jack Henry combined, he’s married to a lobbyist. His son is one. His links to that world, and by extension former Majority Leader Tom “The Hammer” DeLay, and by extension (again) disgraced superlobbyist Jack Abramoff, are ingredients for a Democratic campaign feast. Those connections are a big reason why Blunt’s fellow Republicans rejected the Missourian as majority leader in 2006, ultimately denying him his dream of becoming House speaker.”
AP, 9/29/05: “New majority leader hired man charged in DeLay case”
“A consultant under indictment with Rep. Tom DeLay has been paid roughly $88,000 in fees by the political committee of Rep. Roy Blunt, who is temporarily replacing DeLay as House majority leader, according to federal records….Ellis is one of three political associates of DeLay, R-Texas, who have been indicted in an alleged scheme to use corporate political donations illegally to support candidates in state elections. Ellis also runs DeLay’s national political action committee, Americans for a Republican Majority.”

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WHY ROY BLUNT ISN’T THE HOUSE GOP LEADER

Politico, 11/6/08: “GOP in dire straits”
“Beyond demography, the party is now, thanks to the outgoing president and some members of Congress, perceived by many voters as either incompetent, corrupt or just not standing for much.”
Post-Dispatch, 2/3/06: “Fresh face isn’t Blunt’s”
“Blunt’s downfall was not solely due to his status as an incumbent. Lawmakers said that his deep ties to the lobbying effort, his status-quo agenda, and his close relationship with ex-House Majority Leader Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Texas, helped doom his bid. DeLay was forced to step aside after a Texas grand jury indicted him last year; he also is under scrutiny in the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal.”
Washington Post, 2/3/06: “Post-Abramoff Mood Shaped Vote for DeLay’s Successor”
“What Blunt presumed would be his greatest asset — his links to the current leadership’s system of power and favors — turned out to be a liability. ”

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DIRECT CONNECTIONS TO JACK ABRAMOFF

AP, 1/11/06: “Blunt, DeLay shared connections to lobbyist Abramoff”
“Blunt’s own connections to Abramoff or his clients could complicate GOP plans to distance its leadership from the corruption investigation before the fall elections for control of Congress.”
NY Times, 7/6/05: “For Lobbyist, a Seat of Power Came With a Plate”
“Often, guests dined with Mr. Abramoff and did not receive a check, employees said, though Congressional rules prohibit lawmakers from receiving expensive gifts, including food…Other lawmakers whose names carried the “FOO” notation [i.e., "Friend of Owner"] include Republican Representatives Roy Blunt of Missouri…”
AP, 10/5/05: “DeLay, House successor swapped donations; AP campaign document review shows transactions took circuitous routes”
“When the financial carousel stopped, DeLay’s private charity, the consulting firm that employed DeLay’s wife and the Missouri campaign of Blunt’s son all ended up with money, according to campaign documents reviewed by The Associated Press. Jack Abramoff, a Washington lobbyist recently charged in an ongoing federal corruption and fraud investigation, and Jim Ellis, the DeLay fundraiser indicted with his boss last week in Texas, also came into the picture.

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THE PHILIP MORRIS FAVOR SCANDAL

Washington Post, 6/11/03: “GOP Whip Quietly Tried to Aid Big Donor; Provision Was Meant To Help Philip Morris”
“Several Republicans who learned of the November effort have privately expressed concern that Blunt pushed the provision partly because of his personal relationship with Philip Morris lobbyist Abigail Perlman. Blunt, who several Republicans said spends considerable time with Perlman, would not discuss their relationship or whether the two had talked about the provision.”
The Washington Post, 6/17/03: Relationship with Perlman “raising eyebrows and giving fits to self-appointed ethics cops.”
Roy Blunt, as a Senator, does not represent the people of his district, he represents the Blunt family trust and all that is wrong with the Federal system.
Watching him go from the House to the Senate one has to wonder just how deep in corruption the people of his district are. One thing is certain, a leopard never changes his spots, and with Blunt’s history, he will continue to play the gamer, line his pockets and continue driving the economy of southwestern Missouri into the ground – after all he’s been doing it, and doing it well for almost two decades.
On a side note, we can be thankful that his son, who tried his hand at corruption, albeit on the state level, was quickly discovered and ousted.
Blunt, if he was a man of principal, would resign his seat. But of course, that’s if he was a man of principal.

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