Demagogue

Senator Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) recently tried to explain away questions that have been raised by the fact that his son lobbies the very Senate committee that Chambliss chairs. Courtesy of the DCCC Stakeholder, here is a portion of Chambliss' explanation:

"There are a number of members of this body who have either spouses or children who are lobbyists. My son happens to be a lawyer who does lobbying. And I’m very proud of him. He works hard and does very well. I was a member of the Senate before he made the decision to become a lobbyist."

Did anything about that explanation seem strange? If you weren't reading carefully, you might have missed it. Here's the sentence in question, again:

"I was a member of the Senate before [my son] made the decision to become a lobbyist."

Normally, a House or Senate member who wanted to reassure someone that a family member wasn't cashing in on daddy's position would tell you the opposite. They'd want to be able to say, "I was elected to the Senate after [my son] made the decision to become a lobbyist."

Unless he misspoke, Chambliss wasn't saying that. Indeed, he's essentially bragging about the fact that his son became a Washington lobbyist after he was elected to the Senate. He's emphasizing the very point that makes his son's lobbying activities so ethically troubling.

Amazing.