By: Rob Schofield
Two national advocacy groups dedicated to combating big money corruption in politics are calling on Senator Richard Burr to recuse himself from considering Donald Trump’s nominee for U.S. Education Secretary. And from the sounds of the following release distributed by the groups (End Citizens United and Every Voice) they’ve got a heck of a strong argument.
See what you think:
Campaign Finance Reformers to Senator Burr: Recuse Yourself on DeVos Nomination
North Carolina members of End Citizens United and Every Voice demand recusal of Sen. Burr, who has personally benefited from DeVos donations
DeVos, a zealous opponent of campaign finance safeguards, represents the worst of a rigged Washington system
Money-in-politics reform groups End Citizens United and Every Voice today kicked off a grassroots campaign with a petition calling on Senator Richard Burr to recuse himself from voting on the nomination of Betsy DeVos, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Education.
Republican mega-donor Betsy DeVos and her family have funneled more than $20 million to Republican campaigns, their super PACs, and their dark money allies across the country. [1] That includes nearly $43,000 in direct contributions to Burr, who sits on the Senate’s Health, Education, Labor and Pension committee, which has jurisdiction over her nomination. [2]
DeVos has said that she’s, “decided…to stop taking offense at the suggestion that we are buying influence. Now I simply concede the point. They are right. We do expect some things in return.” [3]
“Donald Trump’s nomination of Betsy DeVos represents the worst of the rigged system in Washington,” said Tiffany Muller, End Citizens United Executive Director. “She’s admitted to using her millions to buy influence and now the same Senators that she funneled money to are voting on her nomination. This is outrageous pay-to-play politics. Our members are calling on Senator Burr to acknowledge his conflict of interest and recuse himself from the vote on her nomination.”