Pay to play: Dems Googling for dollars raises eyebrows

For the second straight day, I bring to you an article from the San Francisco Chronicle:

A Democratic Party-sponsored "national innovation conference" to examine key policy and technology issues at Google's headquarters beginning today has critics charging that the $5,000-and-up ticket prices limit access to the event to Silicon Valley high rollers and raise the specter of "pay to play" politics.

Consumer Watchdog in Santa Monica likened the event to Republicans holding an energy conference at an oil company headquarters.

The consumer rights group urged California Sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein and four other senators to boycott the fundraiser sponsored by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

Eric Schultz, communications director for the campaign committee, defended the event, saying in a statement, "It took Democrats seizing control of Congress to pass the strongest ethics and lobbying reform in history. All of our fundraising is fully transparent and follows the law."

Perhaps it is. But the Chronicle, not Schultz, points out that the event is not open to the public, so the conference isn't transparent.

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