Daren makes a good point about the process of lobbyists contributing money to legislators.
Some are happy to spend the money, while others treat a campaign contribution as one of the less savory costs of doing business.
Just before the legislative session started, lawmakers sponsored various parties to give lobbyists a chance to cough up contributions. (State law bans contributions from lobbyists during a legislative session.)
A lobbyist friend told me she dreaded having to budget enough time and money to hit the overlapping parties for the House Democratic caucus, the House GOP caucus, the Senate Democratic caucus, and the Senate Republican caucus.
Though she would have preferred to stay home, she feared the possible negative repercussions. She paid her dues — literally and figuratively — to help her clients.
This scenario is substantially different from the one described by critics who decry the “evil” influence of lobbyists’ money.
