Knollenberg Still Unconditionally Supports Bush's War in Iraq -- Part 1

Joe Knollenberg has given Unconditional Support to George Bush's war in Iraq.

In one of his most recent statements, Knollenberg said he was supporting Bush's "STAY THE COURSE", but add more troops plan.

Specifically, Knollenberg said, "I am hopeful that the Administration’s new policy [the additional 21,000 troops] will bring an end to the sectarian violence in Iraq. . ." (March 23, 2007 statement.)

Instead, as we have seen, as more and more troops are added, the violence in Iraq just increases as well. Although only half of the additional troops have even arrived in Iraq, last month was the bloodiest month in the history of the conflict.


Vast Majority of Voters in Michigan Disagree with Knollenberg

But voters in Michigan disagree with Knollenberg on the war. In an April 21, 2007 article, the Detroit News reports that 67% of voters disapprove of Bush's handling of the war.

A full two-thirds of us disapprove of Bush's overall job performance! That is a remarkable statistic.

With only a third of us approving of the President's job performance, one would think that our Congressional representatives would feel similarly. Not because they would be following the polling, but simply because it seems they would be well aware of the same failures and problems of which the rest of us are aware and concerned about. But Knollenberg continues to vote with Bush over 90% of the time -- including unquestioning support for the war in Iraq.

Joe Knollenberg's Position on Iraq is Too Extreme for Oakland County.

What does Joe have against the people of DC having full representation?

Yesterday, the House of Representatives passed H R 1905 District of Columbia House Voting Rights Act, which gives the District its first full seat in Congress. Joe voted against the legislation. It may not have enough votes to pass the Senate, and the president has promised to veto the bill if it reaches his desk. Why don't Republicans want residents of Washington, DC to have full representation? They claim it's because it's unconstitutional -- that only states have the right to representation. But we know the real reason -- the seat will certainly be a sure Democratic seat. However, the compromise for passage included adding a representative to Utah, a heavily Republican seat.

The people of DC do pay taxes, so shouldn't they be entitled to have a voice in Congress? Perhaps a load of teabags on the WH lawn would be in order.

Source: Washington Post
By Mary Beth Sheridan and Yolanda Woodlee
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, April 20, 2007; Page A01A

Bill giving the District its first full seat in Congress cleared the House yesterday, marking the city's biggest legislative victory in its quest for voting rights in nearly three decades.Democrats on the House floor burst into applause, and Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) grabbed the arms of the District's nonvoting delegate, Eleanor Holmes Norton, as the 241 to 177 vote was announced.

"There was nothing but joy in the chamber this afternoon," Norton said.

But the bill faces considerable obstacles. Democrats don't appear to have enough votes in the Senate to avoid a filibuster, and the White House has threatened a veto. If the measure becomes law, it probably will be challenged in court.

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/20...

Knollen-omics Strikes Again

Joe Knollenberg's positions on economic policies may help his lobbyist friends, but his positions hurt voters in Oakland County.

According to today's Free Press,

After decades of double-digit growth in property values of residential, commercial and industrial properties, Oakland County's assessed value rose by a mere 1.17% in the past year -- the smallest margin in nearly 40 years.

Knollenberg's positions on economic issues favor the super-rich, but hurt middle-class families. When the economy is strong, it can handle bad policy decisions without having as much impact on families. But eventually these bad policy decisions will have an impact -- and they always hurt middle class families the most.

Joe Knollenberg's Economic Policies Hurt Middle-Class Families.

Michigan Democratic Party Launches Knollenberg Watch

The Democratic party of Michigan has joined the clarion call to the public to be looking at Joe Knollenberg's record, as this blog has been doing for months. Welcome aboard. Click here to view the MDP Knollenberg Watch page.

Once Again Joe Knollenberg Shows Neither Leadership Or Vision

Leaders lead.

Joe Knollenberg is not a leader.

Joe Knollenberg is a follower.

We've already discussed how he "follows" the direction of lobbyists and George Bush when it comes to voting on legislation.

But glancing at his new blog illustrates Knollenberg's lack of leadership and vision. The majority of his blog posts start with phrases such as "great column in the Detroit News today" or "The Detroit News has a great story..."

In short, his blog posts are nothing but links to newspaper articles.

Leaders are people with original thoughts. If Knollenberg had any vision or leadership skills, he would use his blog to discuss what is going on in Congress. He would tell us what his positions were and why. We don't need his help to read the local papers.

We need a representative in Congress who understands our concerns and will fight for our best interests. We deserve someone better than Joe Knollenberg.

How Much Does Knollenberg's Chief Lobbyist Cost Taxpayers?

Joe Knollenberg's Chief of Staff is Trent Wisecup, a Washington D.C. lobbyist.

We know that Washington DC lobbyists like Jack Abramoff make millions of dollars a year.

The only reason someone like that would give up a lucrative job like that would be because working on the inside would give him influence over a Congressman's votes and also because it would give him a network of people to call on later when he went back to lobbying. In DC they call it the "revolving door".

But how much does Knollenberg charge taxpayers for his lobbyist's salary? Wisecup isn't listed as an employee for Knollenberg for the last reporting period that ended on 12/31/06. So we don't know his exact salary, we can only guess it must be more than the $105,505 paid to his Constituent Services Director.

Here is what Knollenberg's other staffers make for 3 months work:

Payee Name	Start date	End date	Position	Amount	Notes
Betz, Steven V	10/01/06	12/31/06	Field Representative	$17,750.00
Brown, Eric K	10/01/06	12/31/06	Staff Assistant	$10,000.00
Ciavattone, Shawn	10/01/06	12/31/06	District Staff Director	$23,900.00
Elrod, Ruth R	10/01/06	12/31/06	Staff Assistant	$8,250.00
Foster, Stuart	10/01/06	12/31/06	Congressional Aide	$9,125.00
Geibel, Karen Sue	10/01/06	12/31/06	Executive Assistant	$28,375.00
Goff, Jeffrey	10/01/06	12/31/06	Legislative Associate	$18,999.99
Hallmark, Jessica	10/01/06	12/31/06	Staff Aide	$12,625.00
Hing, Jennifer L	10/01/06	12/31/06	Communications Director	$20,000.00
Johnson, Kathleen I	10/01/06	12/31/06	Constituent Services Director	$26,376.33
Last, Jeffrey M	10/01/06	12/31/06	Staff Assistant	$8,750.00
Lee, Lindsay A	10/01/06	12/31/06	Legislative Correspondent	$10,499.99
Mitchell, Mildred I	10/01/06	12/31/06	Part-time Employee	$8,000.34
Onizuk, Jeffrey M	10/01/06	12/31/06	Assistant to Rep. Knollenberg (P)	$15,455.01
Orear, Mary M	10/01/06	12/31/06	Field Representative	$18,500.00
Schwarz, Lindsay	10/01/06	12/31/06	Legislative Correspondent	$12,689.17
Wilson, Heather	10/01/06	12/31/06	Staff Assistant	$15,250.00
17 results

Knollenberg Keeps His Lobbyist's Very Close & Their Money Too

We have reported numerous times about how Joe Knollenberg's Chief of Staff, Trent Wisecup, is a Washington, DC Lobbyist who used to represent drug companies & who fought to prevent Seniors from being able to import less expensive medication from Canada. We have also reported on Knollenberg's links to other lobbyists such as Mark Valente and Paul Welday.

Well, today we would like to show you a graphical illustration of the donations that Knollenberg gets from his lobbyist friends.

If you look at the charts below, you will see the names of all of Knollenberg's campaign donors for the 1st quarter of 2007. The lines highlighted in red are lobbyists. You'll see some names scattered around on the charts that are highlighted in red -- until you come to page 4 -6 when you'll see a long block of lobbyists and special interest donors.

No wonder Joe Knollenberg votes the way the lobbyists tell him to vote. They pay for it.

What is Wrong With Knollenberg's FEC Reports?

What is wrong with these pictures?








Knollenberg's Federal Election Commission (FEC) report for the 1st Quarter of 2007 is wrong.

There is money reported as having been collected from special interest Political Action Committees (PACs), but according to the FEC, Knollenberg doesn't reveal from whom it was collected.

Click on the document to the left to enlarge it.

You will see that that the FEC lists Knollenberg as having collected:

Total Receipts: $264,311
Transfers From Authorized Committees: $0
Individual Contributions: $187,530
Non-Party (e.g. PACs) or Other Committees: $74,800


But if you went to the original FEC page for that document, and clicked on that last line item, the FEC link to "non-Party (e.g., PACs) or Other Committees", it only lists 4 PACs that contributed for a sum of $9,500. But the line item above clearly shows receipts of $74,800.

That is a difference of ($74,500 - $ 9,500 =) $65,000. In other words, we only know the source of $9,500 of those special interest PAC funds. Where did the $65,000 come from?

Did Knollenberg and his Chief Lobbyist fail

to properly report $65,000

that they got from special interest PACs?

To be fair, and we are always fair, this error could be the fault of the FEC. If it is, then we would expect Knollenberg's campaign staff to make certain that the error is corrected quickly.

Democrats go after Knollenberg Oakland Press 4/17/07

Democrats clearly have Joe in their sights, not because they're "playing politics" as Trent Wisecup likes to repeat again and again and again. Joe Knollenberg is clearly out of step with his constituents, so much so that he won't let anyone that doesn't see things like the war his way even in his office to talk to him, an office taxpayers pay for. Joe thinks people that disagree with him are "liberal agitators." I think beacons for change is a better way to describe those of us that want to see Joe sent back to Bloomfield Hills permanently.

He's so out of touch, he doesn't even mention Iraq as an issue on his web site. And he doesn't acknowledge the 79% of those surveyed in a Birmingham survey that think the escalation in Iraq is bad policy.

I expect we'll see a letter to the editor any day now from a family member of Trent Wisecup, defending Joe's positions.

I wonder if Joe's heard about the water powered car

Someone sent me this video and I can hardly believe it. This car actually runs on water. They also have a web site, Water Powered Car. I checked it out on Snopes.com and I can't find anything that says it's a hoax. The video is of a news report. Joe, do you think the Big 3 could manufacture this or it could be mass produced here in Michigan? I've forwarded the information to Governor Granholm for further investigation. Not to worry, Republicans wouldn't run with a good idea if it hit them upside the head.

The Sunday, April 15th, 2007 edition of the Oakland Press has a great letter to the editor from Thomas Bem of West Bloomfield Township. Tom hits the nail on the head on Joe Knollenberg's backward thinking. It's nice to see that other constituents are catching on to Joe's lack of leadership on important issues, like having our car manufacturers making cars that are cleaner and get better gas mileage. After all, why are we REALLY in Iraq? Could it be the oil? Just asking.

Where Did Knollenberg's PAC Contributions Really come from?

In just 3 months, Joe Knollenberg raised $264,311 in campaign contributions. That is an average of nearly $90,000 per month. (Clearly Knollenberg spends more time fundraising for himself than he does doing the people's business in D.C.)

His biggest contributors are from PAC funds and lobbyists -- all of whom are associated with special interests.

Over 28% of Knollenberg's funds came directly from PACs. This is actually low for Joe -- he usually gets at least a third of his contributions from PACs alone.

From the FEC:

AMERICAN BANKERS ASSOCIATION PAC (BANKPAC)	03/23/2007	1000.00	27930489071
GENERAL DYNAMICS VOLUNTARY POLITICAL CONTRIBUTION PLAN (GDVPCP)	03/23/2007	5000.00	27930488307
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE	03/27/2007	1000.00	27930490134
RED PAC	03/28/2007	2500.00	27930461881

This raises a question in itself.

The FEC reports Knollenberg got $74,800 from PACs.

But when you follow the link to the PAC contributions, the only PAC donations listed are the four listed above which only total $9,500. Where did the other $65,300 in PAC funds come from? Is Joe hiding something from the FEC?

Knollenberg Voted to Make Medicare MORE PROFITABLE For Insurance Companies

When Congress passed the Medicare prescription drug bill, they debated various provisions that would help make medication more affordable.

For example, they discussed allowing Seniors to import medicine from Canada where it is significantly less expensive. But, Knollenberg's current Chief of Staff, Trent Wisecup, was the lead lobbyist for the Pharmaceutical companies at the time and he led a campaign to keep Congress from allowing Seniors to import their medicines from Canada.

Joe Knollenberg voted to Stop Seniors from
Importing Less Expensive Medications.

Congress also discussed allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices with pharmaceutical companies. Other government programs such as the Veteran's Administration and Medicaid negotiate drug prices. Such negotiations would have saved Seniors and taxpayers billions of dollars.

Joe Knollenberg Voted To
Prohibit Medicare From
Negotiating Lower Prices on Drugs.

As a result, the Medicare prescription drug program has become just another big profit machine for insurance companies. And insurance companies don't even try to hide the fact that Medicare can pay big profits.

An April 1, 2007 article in a magazine for insurance company executives starts out with the following paragraph:

Most Medicare Advantage and Part D sponsors share a common goal: make Medicare a more profitable line of business.

Yes. Insurance companies are now talking about how to maximize their profits from Medicare. This is obscene.

Joe Knollenberg is fighting to help insurance companies, not Seniors.

The Exponential Rise in US Debt Under Knollenberg & Bush

Our economy has suffered an exponential increase in debt under Joe Knollenberg's watch.

Clinton had reined in the debt and deficit spending and in fact turned over to Bush an economy with a $127 billion surplus. By 2005, Bush & Knollenberg had turned that into over $319 billion in deficits.

Chart 1 shows how federal spending has increased dramatically under Bush & Knollenberg. Federal spending has grown from 18.5% of the GDP in 2000 to 20.3% in 2006.

Chart 2 below shows how Bush & Knollenberg have grown the federal budget. This chart shows what will happen if Knollenberg is re-elected in 2008. We can no longer afford Joe Knollenberg!

Since Bush came into office, Knollenberg has readily rubber stamped every single spending bill.

Knollenberg's fiscal irresponsibility has led to enormous debt - - over $8,887,588,819,701. That is nearly $30,000 for every one of us. Bush & Knollenberg are bankrupting this country.

We Can't Afford 2 More Years of Joe Knollenberg!

Schwarzenegger fires back at Joe, get off your butt and join us

Arnold Schwarzenegger fired back at our boy, Rubber Stamp Joe Knollenberg today, telling him to 'Get off your butt and join us.' Good for Arnold. It's about time some people in Joe's party expose Joe Knollenberg for his backward thinking. This blog is exposing Joe for who he really is and I hope that more and more voters in Joe's district are coming to know that Joe Knollenberg is not looking out for their best interests. Joe Knollenberg is looking out for the interests of the lobbyists that donate to his campaign. They've already filled his campaign coffers with $262,000. That money isn't coming from $10, $25 and $50 dollar contributions. It's coming from lobbyists that want something from Joe. For example, the pharmaceutical companies that don't want Joe to vote for the ability of Medicaid to be able to negotiate drug prices. Medicaid Part D has been a boon for the big drug companies. Medicaid is paying about 40% more than they should for drugs for seniors. The Veterans Administration get the same drugs that Medicaid does for 40% less.

When will voters in the 9th Congressional District wake up and smell the coffee? I think I know the answer, November 4, 2008.

If you'd like to help raise money to oust Joe Knollenberg, please go to Retire Joe Knollenberg and click on the Host a Retirement Party icon. Invite families and friends to your house and raise some money for the Democratic candidate. Donate directly by clicking on the ActBlue graphic and use you debit or credit card. It's past time for Joe to go.

Did We Really Invade Iraq To Help Bush & Cheney's Oil Friends?

Did we really go into Iraq to help Bush & Cheney's Oil Company friends get their hands on billions of dollars in oil?

You decide.

From the Dow Jones Newswire (1/9/07)

Iraq's massive oil reserves may be thrown open for large-scale exploitation by Western oil companies - which could end up grabbing up to 75% of the beleagured nation's oil profits.

A draft of this controversial law, which the U.S. government has been helping to craft, would give oil giants such as BP PLC (BP), Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSA) and ExxonMobil Corp. (XOM) 30-year contracts to extract Iraqi crude.
Oil industry executives and analysts say the law, which would allow Western companies to pocket up to three-quarters of profits in the early years, is the only way to get Iraq's oil industry back on its feet after years of sanctions, war and loss of expertise.
* * *
Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister, Barham Salih, who chairs the country's oil committee, is expected to unveil the legislation as early as Monday and the government hopes to have the law enacted by March, according to the report.

Have our troops really been dying to make money for Exxon and Shell? Seems awful suspicious to me.

Still, Joe Knollenberg is supporting Bush's "Stay the Course" strategy. I bet Joe has a lot of stock in Exxon and Shell.

Joe Knollenberg's Positions are Out of Sync With Voters in Oakland County.

Earmarks More Than Triple Under Knollenberg

According to the Congressional Research Service, a non-partisan, government agency that does research for Congress, earmarks have more than tripled under Joe Knollenberg's reign in Congress!

That is right. TRIPLED.

Knollenberg is unapologetic about his earmarks. In one bill alone, he set aside over $2.1 million in earmarks for his friends. [109th Congress, RollCall Vote 628]

Indeed, according to the White House Office of Management and Budget, while on the Appropriations Committee, in 2005 alone, Knollenberg oversaw the adoption of 322 individual earmarks targeted for Michigan and totaling an amazing $ 293,815,000.

Yes. That is $293 Million of earmarks in a single year -- for Michigan alone!

Nationally, under Knollenberg's guidance on the Appropriations Committee, there were over 14,000 earmarks inserted into appropriation bills totaling $19,037,681,000 in 2005. Again, this is just for one year.

It is hard to even fathom what $19,037,681,000 means. It equates to nearly $65 for every American though.

Again, earmarks are not for federal budget items that are critical. They are generally included to payback friends who donated to their campaigns or others who may influence voters in the community. So, earmarks are more like graft, or bribe money. And Joe Knollenberg approves hundreds of millions of such bribe money every year.

JOE KNOLLENBERG's Wasteful Spending Habits
are Too Extreme for Oakland County!

This is sooooooo funny. Just for fun I put a poll on my web site, Retire Joe Knollenberg.


Do you think it's appropriate for Joe Knollenberg to have a lobbyist as his Chief of Staff?

Yes, lobbyists should tell Joe what his opinion should be: 80.00%

No, Joe should make up his own mind: 20.00%

I voted myself, No, Joe should make up his own mind. The thing is, Joe's Congressional office in D.C. is visiting my site 6-8 times per day, so they decided to rig the vote and vote that Yes, it's OK that Joe's Chief of Staff is a lobbyist and tells Joe what his opinion should be.

It's pretty pathetic Trent that you are controlling what Joe says and does. Just what voters in the 9th Congressional District need, another puppetmaster controlling an elected official.

We deserve a Congress person that can think for themselves.

Diabetes Cured by Stem Cell Research? Why Does Joe Knollenberg Oppose Such Breakthroughs?

Joe Knollenberg consistently opposes any efforts by the Federal government to fund embryonic stem cell research.

The importance of this type of research cannot be overstated.

The London Times has an article describing how stem cells have been used to cure diabetes Type I in children! This is a remarkable medical advance.

Can you imagine what medical breakthroughs we could accomplish if scientists in the U.S. weren't so restricted by federal regulations?

Yet Joe Knollenberg continues to support severe and unnecessary restrictions on stem cell research.

Stem Cell Research. Another area where Joe Knollenberg

is Out of Touch with his constitutents.

Joe Knollenberg is too extreme for Oakland County.

'Retire Joe Knollenberg' camp activates early - Farmington Eccentric

Oakland County resident Mike Smith, left, along with "Karl Rove" and "George W. Bush" demonstrate outside of U.S. Rep. Joe Knollenberg's office on Northwestern Highway in Farmington Hills on Wednesday to urge the Congressman to retire.

An Oakland County grassroots group has a creative way of getting its message across.
The group, led by Bruce Fealk of Rochester Hills, stood on the curb on Northwestern Highway, outside of U.S. Rep. Joe Knollenberg's Farmington Hills district office on Wednesday, sporting cartoon-like images of President George W. Bush and his Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove.

The demonstration was a kick-off event of the group's "Retire Joe Knollenberg" campaign, which is fueled by a new Web site, www.RetireJoeKnollenberg.com.
Click here to read the rest of the story.

Joe, I hope your press secretary is paid overtime

Hawaii Joe Knollenberg’s press secretary is certainly working overtime these days. I hope Joe is compensating him or her by the number of articles appearing in the local papers these days. But quantity does not equal quality. Knollenberg is still the same backward thinking Congressman he was when he was lazily spending time in Congress saying nothing and only appearing in print when it was election time. So let me address two of Knollenberg’s big initiatives, his $200 tax credit for health care education in the workplace and his vocal opposition to higher gas mileage requirements for the Big 3.

Knollenberg’s proposal does nothing to address the 46 million Americans that have no health care coverage. In a recent poll, 80% of Americans said they are willing to pay more taxes if they could have a health care plan that covered all Americans. You read that right, 80%, so that surely includes a majority of Knollenberg’s constituents, even the Republican ones. Half of those polled said they’d be willing to pay $500 more in taxes to have universal coverage. I’d say that is overwhelming support for an idea whose time has come. Joe even voted against giving the government the ability to negotiate for lower drug prices on behalf of seniors. Another big giveaway to the drug company lobbyists that have Joe in their hip pocket.

Another Knollenberg policy cornerstone is opposing higher gas mileage standards for automobiles. Joe says, alternative fuels, yes. Higher gas mileage standards, no. Again, Joe is out of touch with his constituents. A recent survey in the Detroit Free Press says that 67% of those polled would pay at least $500 and as much as $2000 for cars that get higher mileage. I wonder if the Big 3 could increase sales and profits if their cars were able to get 40 mpg instead of the mandated 27 mpg. I also wonder if higher mileage would mean more jobs for Michigan autoworkers. Just wondering.

So, all I ask is that you not be fooled by the fact that Joe Knollenberg is getting his name and face in your local newspapers frequently. Do your civic duty as a voter and read about his voting record and his past performance. We need more innovative representation for Michigan’s 9th Congressional district. Let’s elect someone in 2008 that listens to us, instead of Joe Knollenberg, who keeps his office door locked and guarded from his constituents.

Bruce Fealk talks to MDP Chair Mark Brewer about Joe Knollenberg

Bruce Fealk, host of Michigan Progress asked Mark Brewer about Joe Knollenberg's campaign strategy, about 10 minutes into the show.

Joe Has Lobbyists to Tell Him What His Opinion Is

Joe Knollenberg's Chief of Staff -- who also happens to be a Washington DC LOBBYIST -- said that raising fuel economy standards for automobiles would "be the death knell for the domestic auto industry". [Oakland Press, 4/3/07]

Funny thing though, the auto industry doesn't agree with him. Earlier this week, the major trade group for the Auto industry, the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, was advocating that both cars and manufacturing plants reduce emissions of air pollutants like CO2 that cause global warming.

The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, an industry trade group representing General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co., DaimlerChrysler AG, Toyota Motor Corp. and five others, said in a statement that "there needs to be a national, federal, economy-wide approach to addressing greenhouse gases."

Knollenberg's Positions Are Defined By Lobbyists
This week, Lobbyist Wisecup said:

CAFE (Corporate Average Funeral Economy) mandates would cost the Big Three $85 billion at a minimum, Wisecup said.

But less than 3 years ago he said:

President George W. Bush has proposed CAFE reforms based
on recommendations of the National Academy of Sciences, which would increase fuel efficiency without a negative impact on the U.S. automobile industry.

How could CAFE be a "death knell" today when just a few years ago it could have been implemented "without a negative impact"? Seems Joe just needed a phony crisis to harp on.

Knollenberg's Position is Whatever Lobbyists Tell Him It Is.

Joe & Gonzo

Calls for the resignation of the U.S. Attorney General, Alberto Gonzales, are ringing out from both sides of the aisle in Congress. Members of the House and Senate -- both Democrats and Republicans -- have been calling for his resignation amidst the scandal of his firing 8 U.S. Attorneys and replacing them with Karl Rove's political cronies.

Congressman Vern Ehlers, a Republican from Grand Rapids, has called for Gonazales' resignation.

Joe Knollenberg, the Congressman with the amazing knack of finding the wrong side of every issue has yet to make any public declarations about his position on the issue. He hasn't said he supports Gonzales. But he hasn't called for his resignation either.

Why is Joe Knollenberg silent on important issues of corruption and cronyism?

Knollenberg Loses Power

The non-partisian Congress.org has put out their 2007 power rankings. Many Michigan Republicans took a big hit, especially Joe Knollenberg.

"Joe Knollenberg (MI-09) is 220th". This is HUGE considering Joe was all the way up at 12th just a year ago. We already know that Joe was fakin' the bacon, but will he be able to deliver at all for us anymore? Smart money should flock to the Democratic nominee, to deliver for our moderate district in a Democratic Congress.

How Knollenberg's Economics Have Hurt Middle Class Families

Joe Knollenberg has consistently supported economic policies that harm middle class families.

He has been a big supporter of George Bush's tax cuts for the rich -- which we were told would create jobs and drive economic growth.

Part of that is true, those tax cuts certainly drove economic growth -- but the growth was only in the net worth of the wealthiest of individuals.

Under George Bush & Joe Knollenberg's economic policies -- we'll call them "Knollenomics" -- the inequality between rich and poor has grown dramatically.

The Rich Have Gotten Richer Faster Under Knollenomics
A March 29, 2007 article in the New York Times reported on a professor's analysis of IRS data. According to the NYT, some of the conclusions are:

• In 2005, the top 1 percent of Americans (i.e., make over $348,000/yr) got their largest share of national income since 1928
• Those in the top 10% of income levels (i.e., over $100,000/yr) also got their largest share of national income. Everyone else LOST income.
• Total income increased almost 9 percent in 2005. But those gains went primarily to the top 1%

Those in the top 1% saw their incomes go over $1.1 million (a 14% increase).

There are approximately 300 million Americans now.

It takes half of them (150 million in the bottom income tier) to earn as much as the top 300,000 Americans.

The income inequality gap has almost doubled since 1980 -- with the top earners making 440 times what the average person in the bottom half earned.

We Were Warned

Remember during the 2000 Presidential campaign when Al Gore kept saying that George Bush's tax cuts were only going to benefit the top 1%. Well, the data now shows that he was correct.

The NYT article also reported that the "share of income taken by federal taxes" for middle class Americans has been essentially the same for 40 years. But the weathiest of Americans have seen their tax burdens drop by 50%.

The Bush tax cuts -- supported in full and rubber stamped by Joe Knollenberg -- have only made the very rich much richer while the middle class has been left behind.

"President Bush and "Karl Rove" show up to help launch RetireJoeKnollenbeg.com

"President Bush" and "Karl Rove" were nice enough to stop by at Joe's office in Farmington Hills to help launch www.RetireJoeKnollenberg.com today. Everyone that attended was really excited to meet Karl and President Bush. I hope you will visit the www.RetireJoeKnollenberg.com site often.

"Do Nothing Joe"

"Do Nothing Joe" Knollenberg is certainly living up to his nickname these days.

Looking back at his record over the first quarter of this year we can see that he hasn't done anything useful!!!

One could argue that given concerns over Knollenberg's competency, maybe it is better that he doesn't do much. Like his friend George Bush, Knollenberg is always on the wrong side of the issue anyway.

But there are times when leadership is important. And Joe provides no leadership whatsoever.

One such area has to do with our trade policies.

Knollenberg Supports Trade Agreements That Threaten Our Jobs & Our Health
We've reported before that Joe Knollenberg supports what he calls "free trade" with countries like China. He fails to recognize that there is no such thing as free trade. There is always a cost.

The cost to us in Michigan has been jobs. We have seen our high paying jobs -- both blue collar manufacturing jobs and the associated white collar engineering jobs get shipped overseas. And Knollenberg supports the federal policies that allow that to continue.

And we can now see another example of how Knollenberg's "Free Trade" agreements cause us harm -- look at the poisoned pet food problem that we are experiencing.

That poison has been traced back to a manufacturing plant in China that sold wheat gluten to the food manufacturers.

Not only is this tragic because it means many of us have been unknowingly poisoning our dogs and cats, but today DelMonte announced that the wheat gluten they used in their recalled foods was labeled as "human grade". That means that it may well have been used in human food products.


Another disturbing aspect of this crisis is that FDA's activities seem limited to posting information on their website and maybe helping with some forensic evaluations of the pet food.

Isn't this the sort of thing the FDA should be protecting us from in the first place? Why aren't they? Of course Joe Knollenberg has shown NO LEADERSHIP on the issue of FDA's failure to protect public health and welfare from bad drugs or bad food.

Is Knollenberg incompetent
or has he just been paid off
by lobbyists
to not do anything that could
cost their industry's money?

When is a Blog Not a Blog -- When it is Joe Knollenberg's

Joe Knollenberg now claims to have a "blog".

What is most interesting though, is that he doesn't allow anyone to leave comments on his "blog".

So, basically, Knollenberg's idea of a "blog" means he gets to censor free speech.


The Irony of it All
Of course there is even more irony on Joe's new website -- he doesn't allow you to contact him by email!!!

His "contact" page only provides snail mail addresses.

That is not a surprise to his Constituents who have tried to contact him already know that he doesn't meet with or correspond with, or even reply to constituents.

It is just ironic that he has a website, but won't allow anyone to make comments or contact him via email.


Joe Knollenberg Ignores Constituents But Meets With Lobbyists
He does meet frequently with Washington DC lobbyists from Big Oil, Pharma, etc. He particularly likes to have them host fundraisers for him. (We have more about that coming up in a future post.)

Too bad we as voters don't have a lobbyist. That would be the only way we could get Joe to listen. Well, if we had a lobbyist and we gave him lots of money towards his re-election campaign.

We have a different strategy for 2008 though. We are building a grassroots effort to replace Joe. We have been getting great support from the community.

If you want to help us
get Joe Knollenberg out of Congress,
contact us at
joe@knollenberg.org

Meanwhile, notice all the anti-Knollenberg websites that are popping up these days like www.retirejoeknollenberg.com and www.knollenberg.org. No wonder Joe is so nervous these days.

First Retire Hawaii Joe Knollenberg House Party a Success

The first Retire Hawaii Joe Knollenberg House party was held in Rochester Hills on Sunday. We had an enthusiastic group as we gathered for fun, food and politics. Here's a little video we recorded to express our feelings about Joe Knollenberg.

Joe Knollenberg's War on the Middle Class Continues

Once again Joe Knollenberg has voted AGAINST Middle Class families.

Yesterday, Congress voted on a Resolution to:

* Provide Funds for the State Children's Health Insurance Program
* Grant middle-income tax relief
* Provide funds for higher education
* Make improvements in Medicare
* Support the creation of long term energy alternatives


JOE KNOLLENBERG VOTED NO ON ALL OF THOSE THINGS.

JOE KNOLLENBERG Opposes providing Health Insurance to Children.

JOE KNOLLENBERG Opposes providing middle class tax relief

JOE KNOLLENBERG Opposes making higher education more affordable.

JOE KNOLLENBERG Opposes allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices to save Seniors and taxpayers money.

JOE KNOLLENBERG Opposes alternative energy plans that could reduce profits for Big Oil companies.


Joe Knollenberg Has Spent His Career Fighting AGAINST MIDDLE CLASS families.

Joe Knollenberg is TOO EXTREME for Oakland County.

Now Joe is trying to pass himself off as defender of education

It's so sad. Joe is so scared of losing his seat in Congress, he's willing to do and say anything.

Joe Knollenberg is not a defender of education

I feel compelled to write in response to Joe Knollenberg’s recent letter to the editor in the Birmingham Eccentridc regarding his legislation to provide a $5,000 scholarship for high school students that enter college and major in math, science, engineering or health-care related field.

Great idea Joe, but you’re a little late to the party. If I could ever get to meet with you face to face, I’d ask why you’re only now proposing legislation to address the education needs of our children. Just to refresh the voters’ memory, back in 2005, Joe Knollenberg voted to slash funding for primary schools by $784 million. Joe also voted to cut federal student aid by $12.7 billion that would have allowed middle class students to obtain low cost loans. That same legislation increased the interest rate charged on the loans that are still being offered. Now Joe Knollenberg would have us believe he’s on our side. The hypocrisy is overwhelming. When Joe Knollenberg was in the majority and he felt his seat was not at risk, he felt perfectly safe slashing education funds.

Now that he feels his seat in Congress is in jeopardy, Joe feels the need to introduce legislation. I say voters are smarter than you give them credit for, Mr. Knollenberg.

In a recent document that was referenced in Congressional hearings involving the General Services Administration, Mr. Knollenberg is listed as “may not run.” Even though he has announced he is running, it makes one think, maybe the White House knows something we don’t know as Joe’s constituents.

Bye Bye Joe

Both the Democratic Party and the Republics consider Knollenberg to be on the endangered list in terms of the 2008 election.

The 9th District is only marginally ~1% Republican now. By 2008 that will have changed in part because of demographics and in part because the Republic Party as a brand has a reputation somewhere below that of Enron.

Add to that Knollenberg's unconditional support of George Bush's war in Iraq when the vast majority of voters in this District oppose the war and you have a recipe for Knollenberg being defeated by a landslide.

Bye bye Joe.

Why don't you do us all a favor and just resign now.

Oh, and take your smarmy lobbyist staffers with you.

Rove document lists Knollenberg as "may not run"

During a hearing today in front of Henry Waxman's committee a Powerpoint presentation was being discussed. On page 10 of the presentation there is an asterisk next to Joe's name which indicates that Joe may not seek re-election. Is there something you're not telling us, Joe? Maybe this blog is having a bigger effect on Joe's re-election plans than we thought.

Knollenberg Gets Even Cozier With Lobbyists

Joe Knollenberg must know that voters are starting to realize just how EXTREME he is and how out of touch he is with the District.

He has already started campaigning for 2008!

Not only has he started campaigning, but he has started to line up lobbyists and is collecting their big checks. He has a big fundraiser scheduled for April 25th in Washington DC. He is charging lobbyists $1000 per ticket just to get in. I wonder what how many favors a $1000 buys from Joe these days?

Oh, and the fundraiser is a function of ROMP -- an organization started by TOM DELAY!!! Yep. Joe Knollenberg is still following Tom Delay's lead. Maybe this is how Tom Delay pays back rubber stamp Congressman like Joe Knollenberg.

Of course just last week Knollenberg was at a fundraiser with Karl Rove. Rove of course is good friends with the lobbyist and convicted felon, Jack Abramoff.

Joe sure knows how to pick his felons lobbyists criminals friends.

Why Does Joe Knollenberg Hate Free Speech?

Most members of Congress have at least some appreciation of the Constitution -- including the Bill of Rights.

Joe Knollenberg is the exception. Joe Knollenberg's actions indicate he is an ardent opponent of free speech.

Here are a few examples of how Knollenberg tries to stifle free speech:

1. Knollenberg has started a "blog" but refuses to accept public comments on his blog
2. Knollenberg's Chief of Staff, a Washington DC Lobbyist, attacks voters who exercise their free speech rights by writing letters to the editor or by engaging in peaceful protests
   
3. Knollenberg consistently objects to members of Congress who propose resolutions that he objects to -- he doesn't just indicate his objection to the substance of the resolution, he argues they shouldn't even offer the resolution in the first place.

Then again, Knollenberg seems to object to everything about the 1st amendment. We know for example that he believes that government should ignore the portion of the first amendment that precludes the government from establishing religion -- because Knollenberg is a Christian Nationalist, Knollenberg believes the U.S. is a "Christian Nation" and doesn't think citizens who are not christian should be able to challenge government actions to promote the Christian religion.

We already addressed this in a previous post where we noted that that Joe Knollenberg voted YES on the Christian Supremacy Act.

Poor Joe doesn't like it when the Democrats play politics

From Joe's blog:
http://www.knollenberg.house.gov/blog/?p=27

"Support our Troops
Earlier this year, I introduced a resolution recognizing March 26th as “National Support Our Troops Day.” I introduced the same resolution last year and the House passed it unanimously! However, this year Speaker Pelosi won’t even allow a vote on my resolution. There is only one reason for this: POLITICS. Why won’t a Democrat Speaker allow a Republican member to offer a resolution honoring our troops? POLITICS!It’s time for the politics to end and the bipartisan support of our troops to begin."

OMG! Politics in Congress! Who could ever imagine that.

Yes, we should support our troops, Joe, and the best way to do that is TO BRING THEM HOME!!!! Funny how short the Republicans' memory is -- when they were in charge it was okay to block votes on resolutions, but now that the Democrats are in the majority, it's all of a sudden something to cry about.

And, by the way, Joe, Nancy Pelosi is the Democratic Speaker, not the Democrat Speaker.

Knollenberg Wastes Taxpayer $$$ To Spread Campaign Lies

Joe Knollenberg just send out another campaign flyer on taxpayer money.

He doesn't even bother to try to send out fake newsletters anymore, he just sends out regular campaign literature.

This is just another in a long line of examples of Joe Knollenberg's refusal to exercise common sense when it comes to spending taxpayer dollars.

The flyer is humorous though in the sense that it states in bold red type: "Knollenberg Votes NO on Oil Subsidies..."

What is funny is that if he hadn't voted for them in 2005, he wouldn't have been embarrassed into voting against them in 2007!!!

Joe Knollenberg voted to give Big Oil companies billions of dollars in taxpayer subsidies.

Joe is on the Wrong Side of the Iraq Issue

Once again, Joe Knollenberg is on the wrong side of an important issue.

We know the majority of Americans now oppose the war in Iraq. In a recent poll, USAToday found that 59% of Americans thought the war in Iraq was a mistake in the first place.

46% of Americans don't think we can win in Iraq.

58% think we should withdraw troops within the next 12 months.

Once again, Joe Knollenberg is ignoring the will of the people.

Joe Knollenberg is still advocating the failed strategy of "Stay the Course".

Knollenberg's Vote Today Hurts Our Troops

In addition to assuring funding sufficient for the Pentagon to properly equip the troops, the supplemental spending bill that passed the House today (also known as the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Health and Iraq Accountability Act" also supported the troops in other ways as well.

The Act would hold the Bush Administration and Iraqi government accountable and would get our troops out of the way of the current civil war by engaging in a strategic redeployment by 2008.

In addition, the bill expanded funding for veterans’ health care and hospitals.

The bill also funded efforts to refocus military efforts on Afghanistan and fighting terrorism.

The only thing the opponents could come up with was that the bill was "micromanaging" the war. But that is disingenuous. There are legislative off-ramps that would allow the President to waive any provisions that were too restrictive. There was no excuse not to support this bill.

Joe Knollenberg voted NO on all of these things.

But I think the part that is still most disturbing is that Knollenberg refuses to vote for legislation that would mandate that the troops have proper body armor.

Again, this 30 second video illustrates the consequences of Knollenberg's stubborn refusal to give our troops the proper body armor:

Knollenberg Votes Against The Troops Again!

Joe Knollenberg voted against the troops again!

HR 1591 was the supplemental funding bill. It includes funding for the war in Iraq. Unlike previous legislation funding the war in Iraq, the Democrats have insisted that any troops that Bush sends to Iraq have at least the minimum amount of body armor that a soldier should have.

Specifically, the bill prohibits

the use of funds under this Act to deploy any unit of the Armed Forces to Iraq unless the chief of the military department concerned has certified to the congressional appropriations committees in advance that the unit is fully mission capable.

There is an "escape" provision that "Authorizes the President to waive such prohibition and deployment limits on a unit-by-unit basis for reasons of national security."

Knollenberg voted NO on this bill because it contained provisions like that that were intended to protect the troops by guaranteeing they would not be sent into harm's war without at least having the proper protective equipment including the current technology for bullet proof vests. Knollenberg would allow our troops to go into battle using the old and outdated vests that were used in Vietnam.

This 30 second video shows that using the most current technology for bullet proof vests is a matter of life and death.



Rather than support the troops, Joe Knollenberg has once again chosen to just vote his Party line.

Knollenberg Doesn't Want You To Know That He Supports Privatizing Social Security

Looking though Joe Knollenberg's website again, it is interesting to note not just what he says, but what he doesn't say as well.

Joe Knollenberg supports privatizing Social Security. He realizes that this puts him on the opposite side of the issue than the vast majority of voters, so now he won't admit it.

Make no mistake about it, if a bill came before Congress to privatize Social Security, Joe Knollenberg would vote for it.

Before the last election he submitted a survey response to AARP that stated he supported privatizing Social Security -- he just prefers to call it "personalizing" it instead of "privatizing".

Funny how he won't put that on his website though. Then again, he won't even admit on his website that he is a Republican.

Knollenberg's Spends Money Irresponsibly

We've already pointed out that Knollenberg's Chief of Staff is Washington DC lobbyist. Yes. Knollenberg's Chief of Staff is a lobbyist, just like the infamous felon Jack Abramoff!

But now Knollenberg and his lobbyist have put up a billboard and website asking for contributions. The press articles report that the billboard cost $10,000 and the website cost $1,500. Now they are trying to raise campaign funds to cover that cost -- but they are trying to raise them in amounts below which they have to track and report the individual donations to the FEC!

Are Knollenberg and his lobbyist, Trent Wisecup, trying to skirt campaign finance laws?

Of course we also have to question the judgment of anyone who would put up a billboard like that for $10,000.

Unfortunately for us, Knollenberg spends taxpayer money just as wildly as he spends his millions in campaign funds.

Joe Knollenberg Still Just Wants To "Stay The Course" In Iraq

Joe Knollenberg still wants to "Stay the Course" in Iraq.

He has said the same thing about Iraq month, after month, after month.

According to his Chief Lobbyist, Trent Wisecup, Knollenberg is impatient and wants to see progress soon. But he keeps saying that over and over and over. And there is no progress. But he never changes his message.

He is like a bird that just repeats the same phrases over and over again.

Awwwk. Polly wants a cracker. Awwwk.

Therein lies the problem with Joe Knollenberg -- he doesn't DO anything!

Knollenberg has not put forth a single proposal to resolve the problem in Iraq. Knollenberg has not worked with other members of Congress to come up with a bipartisan solution.

Month After Month After Month Knollenberg Says the Same Thing About Iraq.

And Month After Month Knollenberg Does The Same Thing -- NOTHING

All Knollenberg does is repeat the same tired rhetoric. Well, the voters in this District are just as tired as Old Joe's rhetoric. They'll finally put him out to pasture in 2008.

More Crazy Talk From Joe

It looks like Joe has finally gone over the edge: On Sunday, March 18th , Joe Knollenberg said:

"A random thought on a Sunday evening in Oakland County … if the“professional environmentalists” (those who get paid to shut down job-producing and wealth-generating industries like the automotive sector of the economy) wantAmerica to behave more like Western Europe on climate change … why do theycontinue to oppose allowing us to use nuclear power and diesel engine technology more fully?"

Does anyone know anyone who gets "paid to shut down job-producing and wealth-generating industries"?

I've never met anyone with that job title. How would they fit it on a business card?

That is just crazy talk.

Not mention his paranoia about people opposing diesel technology -- many of the new engines being produced today are diesel engines! What is he talking about? It is the auto industry's choice as to whether they want to use gasoline or diesel engines. The engines in Europe combined with the pollution standards here in the US would be great. Who is arguing against that?

Knollenberg has gone from a do-nothing Congressman to an hallucinating Congressman. I'm not sure, but it might be an improvement. At a minimum, it is more entertaining.

Knollenberg Voted Against Arming Our Troops!! Again.

This is outrageous. This is a matter of life and death.

Last week Joe Knollenberg voted to send our troops to Iraq without proper body armor.

Knollenberg thinks our troops only deserve Vietnam era body armor -- he won't vote to supply them with the proper body armor. This 30 second video by a veterans group illustrates the difference.



During the same Appropriations committee meeting, Knollenberg also voted to slash funds for veterans healthcare again!

We have contacted votevets.org to see what we need to do to modify this so it can be run here so voters see just how Knollenberg "supports" the troops.

If you are interested in helping, send an email to Joe@knollenberg.org and we will add you to our contact list.


[Thanks to Sharon for her post on this issue and to Bruce for raising the issue to my attention.]

Why Does Joe Hate the Troops?

From a post at DailyKos: http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/3/20/111114/789

Joe was among the Republican members of the House Appropriations Committee who unanimously opposed requiring that the troops sent to Iraq be properly prepared for their mission and protected with armor. Again.

Let's see what he does when this bill comes up for a vote in the full House -- I think we all know what he'll do.

Correction on Joe's vote on HR 1362

For the record, I was wrong in my post on Joe's vote on HR 1362 regarding government contractors. He actually wound up voting yes on this bill. He had voted no on an earlier vote related to this bill, but wound up voting yes on the actual bill.

Sorry for the error.

Survey Shows Joe's Wrong on Mileage Claims

Poor Joe, he can't get anything right. He's wrong on the war and now this. A Detroit Free Press survey show that 67% of those polled in Michigan would pay at least $500 and up to $2000 for vehichles that get better gas mileage. Read the article here.

Looks like Joe wasted his $10,000 for that big old billboard on I-75.

What do you think?

The Real Reason Joe Knollenberg Opposes CAFE Standards

Joe Knollenberg has been out proclaiming himself the defender of the universe auto industry because he opposes increasing the CAFE standards for cars and trucks.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) is:

. . . the sales weighted average fuel economy, expressed in miles per gallon (mpg), of a manufacturer’s fleet of passenger cars or light trucks with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 8,500 lbs. or less, manufactured for sale in the United States, for any given model year. Fuel economy is defined as the average mileage traveled by an automobile per gallon of gasoline (or equivalent amount of other fuel) consumed as measured in accordance with the testing and evaluation protocol set forth by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Knollenberg claims higher CAFE will destroy the Auto Industry. This is particularly interesting since 2 years ago his current Chief lobbyist of Staff was advocating FOR higher CAFE standards, stating that he supported Bush's proposal to raise CAFE standards because they were:

based on recommendations of the National Academy of Sciences, which would increase fuel efficiency without a negative impact on the U.S. automobile industry.

Gosh. I wonder why those higher standards would now suddenly devastate the auto industry. NO explanation from Joe or his lobbyist on that one.

Now the CAFE standard for cars has been set at 27.5 mpg for the last 17 years. Doesn't it seem like the auto companies could (and in fact probably have) done something to increase gas mileage over the last 2 decades?

Higher CAFE Standards Mean Less Money For Joe From Big Oil
But, it all makes sense now. Raising CAFE standards means consumers will use less gasoline. If we buy less gasoline, big greedy oil companies like ExxonMobil won't make as much of a profit. Maybe instead of making $40 Billion in profits every year they will only be able to make $38 or 39 Billion.

And Joe certainly doesn't want the oil companies to see any reduction in their profits -- because that might mean they would give him less money for his campaigns.

Joe Knollenberg is very cozy with the big oil interests. So cozy that he votes FOR Big Oil Profits and against average middle class families.

Here is a sample of Joe's PRO OIL/ANTI-Family votes:

* Knollenberg voted against cracking down on the oil and gas industries price gouging [HR 3402, Vote 500, 9/28/2005]
* Knollenberg voted for the GOP energy bill that gave billions to oil, gas and nuclear industries [HR 6, Vote 445, 7/28/2005]

The real reason Knollenberg opposes increasing CAFE standards is because Oil industry lobbyists told him to.

Another Cozy Relationship Link Between Knollenberg & George Bush's Failed Policies

Joe Knollenberg has been a reliable rubber stamp Congressman for George W. Bush.

Knollenberg votes the way Bush tells him to vote.

Interestingly, there is another close tie between Knollenberg's lobbyist, Trent Wisecup, who is also Knollenberg's Chief of Staff, and George Bush's lobbyist -- they both were executives at the same firm!

Here is the DC Navigator's Press Release proudly announcing that Bush's lobbyist was joining the lobbying firm where Wisecup was a Vice President.

We know Joe votes how Bush tells him to vote.
And we know Joe votes how lobbyists tell him to vote.
Now he has both Bush and the lobbyists telling him how to vote.
Too bad our Congressman cannot think for himself.

Knollenberg's Chief of Staff Must Be An Expert At "Dirty Tricks"

Joe Knollenberg's Chief of Staff is the bigshot Washington DC lobbyist, Trent Wisecup. He was most recently a lobbyist affiliated with a group called "DC Navigators".

But he wasn't just any lobbyist. He also worked directly on election campaigns, including Governor Schwarzenegger. (Which just makes the anti-Arnold billboard he put up for Knollenberg all the more strange.)

More specifically, according to the DC Navigators website, Wisecup "directed the campaign’s opposition research and rapid response teams."

That of course means that Wisecup's job was to dig-up and make-up, dirt on any opponents. Richard Nixon was an expert at such dirty tricks. Apparently such low ethical standards are still in force in the Republican Party.

Lying About the Background of an Opponent
What types of things would a scumbag opposition research & rapid responder do? Lie of course. (No wonder lobbyists are so good at that job!)

In the case of Schwarzenegger's campaign in 2003, his opposition research and rapid responder lied about the background of a stuntwoman who had accused the movie star of groping her while filming. How did the scumbag opp researcher respond? By lying about the woman's background. They claimed she was a felon with a long criminal background. It wasn't true. She had never been in trouble with the law. If you want more, just google the name Schwartzenegger and "dirty tricks" and you'll get plenty of hits.

Who Pays Wisecup's Salary?
Another interesting point -- who does Wisecup really work for? Is he working for Knollenberg or is he still a lobbyist? He is listed as Knollenberg's Chief of Staff, but his name doesn't show up on the list of House staffers and their salaries. And we know that his lobbying firm opened up a Detroit office a few years ago.


How Can You Trust A Congressman Who Fills His Staff With D.C. Lobbyists?
Don't you think that after all the scandals involving Republican Congressman and Washington D.C. lobbyists, that any rational Member of Congress would avoid hiring a lobbyist at all costs? Not Joe. Oh No.

Joe prefers to keep his lobbyists and their fists full of fundraising dough real close.

Who does Wisecup work for? The lobbying firm?

Maybe the better question is who does Joe Knollenberg work for? It certainly isn't the voters of the 9th District. I think we'll find out more as we continue to investigate his campaign contributions, extensive earmarks for campaign donors, and other things he has done in exchange for campaign cash and other party favors.

Congressman like Joe Knollenberg are a Lobbyist's
Best Friend.

You're Invited to our first Joe Knollenberg Retirement Party

Sunday April 1, 2007 at 5 p.m. we're having our first Joe Knollenberg Retirement Party. Hope you can make it. Join the fun.

For more details about this invitation and to RSVP online, go to: http://www.party2win.com/retirejoeknollenberg/parties?e=retirejoe1&userid=38973