End Citizens United (ECU) President Tiffany Muller released the following statement supporting Dan Feehan’s comment on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Renewable Fuel Standard decision:
“Rep. Jim Hagedorn’s silence is deafening, but it comes as no surprise considering Hagedorn has taken $35,000 from Big Oil and Gas over the course of his career. Rep. Hagedorn is the embodiment of Washington’s corruption, which is why End Citizens United added him to our Big Money 20 list. Meanwhile, Dan Feehan is rejecting corporate PAC money and proving to Southern Minnesotans that he’ll fight for their interests every day. There’s one clear leader who will be accountable to Southern Minnesotans, and that’s Dan Feehan.”
Rep. Jim Hagedorn has taken $35,000 from Big Oil and Gas and over $130,000 from corporate PACs over the course of his career. In August, Hagedorn stood by silently as Corn Plus, an ethanol refinery in Southern Minnesota, closed and laid off 40 employees. Rep. Hagedorn’s dependence on corporate special interests extends beyond his ties to Big Oil. In 2018, Hagedorn took $32,000 from the financial industry to support his campaign and returned the favor by voting to repeal Dodd-Frank and to weaken the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Within days of accepting $2,000 from the International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers (IPCPR), Rep. Jim Hagedorn cosponsored legislation supported by the IPCPR.
End Citizens United aims to educate voters about the Big Money 20, incumbents who represent the worst of Washington, and rally support for reforming the political system. The members of the Big Money 20 are incumbents who take money from corporate special interests, mega-donors, and industries like Big Pharma and Big Oil and then put those interests ahead of their constituents. In the 2018 cycle, ECU helped defeat or retire 82% of the Big Money 20 targets. ECU will connect its more than 550,000 donors to endorsed candidates who are challenging Big Money 20 targets.
ECU has conducted extensive polling and research showing that voters across the political spectrum support getting big money out of politics. ECU is a traditional political action committee (PAC) with more than four million members, including 4,600 in Minnesota’s First Congressional District. The reform group is entirely grassroots-funded with an average donation of just $14.
For a full list and additional background on the Big Money 20, click here.
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