A new story from NBC news outlines how Senator Jon Tester’s public image as an ethics crusader doesn’t align with the reality of his 16 years in office.
From NBC:
“Despite his push for lobbying reform, Tester over the years has ranked among the Senate’s top recipients of campaign cash from lobbyists, according to OpenSecrets, a nonpartisan and nonprofit group that tracks money in politics. Tester was second only to Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., in 2018, when both were last up for re-election. In 2012, during his bid for a second term, he topped the list.
The 24 donors who previously served in the House or the Senate — many of whom overlapped with Tester — stand out among the donors given his July sponsorship of the Close the Revolving Door Act. Tester had pushed for a lifetime lobbying ban on former members of Congress in the past, but he and other proponents fell short in rounding up enough support.”