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January 29, 2009

Mikulski Raking in Re-Election Cash

They are not be eyepopping numbers, by current campaign finance standards, but Maryland's senior senator, Barbara A. Mikulski, is actively raising money for her unannounced (and, for now, unopposed) try for a fifth six-year term next year.

The Democratic veteran collected more than $160,000 in the three-month period that concluded at the end of last month. Most of those donations came in chunks of $1,000 or more from Washington lobbyists and the PACs of corporations, labor unions, liberal interest groups, government contractors and trade associations, including a number from the health care field.

Mikulski, 72, is a member of the Senate Health committee and is heading up a task force this year on health care reform, a top priority of the Obama administration and congressional Democrats. She also is a longtime member of the Senate Appropriations committee, one of the most lucrative perches for political money-raising purposes.

Mikulski began the 2009-2010 election cycle with $874,487 in her campaign account, according to her recently filed Federal Election Commission disclosure report. That's not a huge amount of dough for a statewide race, but it's decent seed money for a popular incumbent who is unlikely to draw serious opposition.

In Mikulski's last re-election race, in 2004, she spent $6.5 million. Her Republican challenger, E.J. Pipkin, spent $2.2 million--most of it his own money--for the privilege of getting trounced by nearly two-to-one.

Posted by Paul West at 8:00 AM | | Comments (5)
        

Comments

After voting to immunize the telephone companies after the fact for their role in illegally spying on US citizens, Babs better be raising money. I'd vote for a dead rat before her. I'd even vote for Pipkin.

Mikulski, O'malley are on some kind od dilusional drug. Job can not be created by printing money and spreading it around to the tax payers (Hard working people) and free loaders ( non - working people)
A free check from the goverment will be most likley spent at Trget or Wallmart where 95% of the produst are made in China, India, Korea etc.
This will empoy more Chinamen, Indians not Americans, the profits would come back to Corporate America where the fat cats (CEO's)who buy these politicians. Oh they might hire one more Accountant to count the money & one more lawyer to protect their money. What we need is History to repeat itself and have a tea party

Mikulski, O'malley are on some kind od dilusional drug. Job can not be created by printing money and spreading it around to the tax payers (Hard working people) and free loaders ( non - working people)
A free check from the goverment will be most likley spent at Trget or Wallmart where 95% of the produst are made in China, India, Korea etc.
This will empoy more Chinamen, Indians not Americans, the profits would come back to Corporate America where the fat cats (CEO's)who buy these politicians. Oh they might hire one more Accountant to count the money & one more lawyer to protect their money. What we need is History to repeat itself and have a tea party

It's great that Mikulski has so much campaign money already. I'm glad she's running again. She'll have my vote because I trust she'll always use common sense and fairness to make decisions.

Dems buying elections - I'm shocked.


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About the bloggers
Laura Smitherman has been ensconced in the State House basement, writing about the governor, General Assembly and vagaries of Maryland politics for several years. An erstwhile business reporter, her interest in politics dates to her days in Washington when she covered Congress and national campaigns for another media outlet. She now follows a range of policy debates from slot-machine gambling to universal health care and energy regulation, while keeping an eye on the next election.

Paul West covers Washington for The Baltimore Sun, continuing a tradition that began the month the paper was born, in 1837. He hasn't been in the DC bureau that long--only since Ronald Reagan was president. He's covered Congress, the White House and presidential campaigns as the paper's national political correspondent and Washington bureau chief. He's on the lookout for news of significance to Sun readers at the other end of the B/W Parkway. That includes the activities of the state's congressional delegation and anything else that might shed some light on the inner workings of the nation's capital.

Julie Bykowicz's first days as a political reporter, in January 2009, coincided with Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon's indictment and the start of the Maryland General Assembly's 426th legislative session. She focuses on coverage of state agencies, such as social services, juvenile justice and prisons. During the session, she wrote about the death penalty, slots parlors and speed cameras, among other hot topics. Julie began political reporting after more than seven years on The Baltimore Sun's crime desk. She lives in Baltimore and works primarily in Annapolis.

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