We had so much fun tweaking Harvey Rosenfield and Jamie Court for their record of hypocrisy earlier this week, we can’t resist punking them again.
After all, are there really any bigger bullies in California politics than these two? And like all bullies, it never hurts for them to feel a little blood on their own lips.
The corporate stock profiteering by the Consumer Education Foundation wasn’t just limited to energy companies.
In 2004, the press regularly quoted Court criticizing Gov. Schwarzenegger for taking political contributions (but it’s not like Court was taking intervenor fees… oh wait… more on that to come).
In fact, this appeared in the Capitol Morning Report on August 26, 2004.
Arnold’s $350,000 trip to the GOP convention in New York is being paid for in part by the pharmaceutical industry, including Abbot Labs, Amgen and Pfizer.
Yesterday, a group of 20 seniors from California who can’t afford their prescription drugs arrived in Vancouver, Canada on a chartered train dubbed the Rx Express. There the Californians purchased their medications with an average 58% savings compared to American prices. That’s about $2,000 in savings per year for each patient. The seniors are advocating that all Californians have access to bulk discounts for their prescription drugs like Canadians do.
But Arnold has a different idea.
A bevy of bills is now headed for Arnold’s desk that will allow re-importation of medications from Canada and access to bulk purchasing pools for prescription drugs. Arnold has signaled his intent to veto those bills, having pocketed $342,000 in pharmaceutical company campaign contributions in addition to the drug company cash that has paid for Arnold’s own Rx Express to New York.
While Arnold gives his “American Dream Speech” at the Republican convention next week, California seniors will only be able to dream of affordable prescription drugs in America.
-Jamie Court, Arnoldwatch.org Press Release (www.arnoldwatch.org), August 26, 2004
But according the their official tax forms filed at the Attorney General’s Office, CEF made money trading stocks in pharmaceutical companies just a few years earlier. You can’t have it both ways.
- In 1999, CEF turned a profit trading Genzyme and Elan stock.
- As of December 31, 1999, CEF owned stock in Abbott Labs, Amgen, Johnson and Johnson, Merck and Co., Pfizer, and Proctor and Gamble.
- In 2000, CEF made quick profits in Genzyme, Idec Pharmaceuticals, and Merck and Co.; they also turned profits trading Amgen and Genentech.
- As of December 31, 2000, CEF owned stock in Abbott Labs, Barr Labs, Johnson and Johnson, Pfizer, and Proctor and Gamble.
- In 2001, CEF made quick profits in ALZA Corp. and CVS Corp.; they also traded shares of Johnson and Johnson, Pharmacia, Biogen, and Pfizer.
- As of December 31, 2001, CEF owned stock in Abbott Labs, Amgen, Barr Labs, Cardinal Health, Johnson and Johnson, Merck and Co., Pfizer, Proctor and Gamble and Schering Plough.
(source: Consumer Education Foundation yearly tax form 990s, 1999-2001)
This was about the same time the Los Angeles Times reported that Rosenfield was paying himself $100k a year from CEF.
Hey Jamie what do you think those 20 seniors would think if they knew what disgusting hypocrites you and Harvey are?
Bullies exposed.
Political Chow 