Ho, Ho, Ho, End the Quid Pro Quos!

On December 14, 2021, Santa took the Reindeer Express to the Pennsylvania State Capitol building in Harrisburg, PA to tell our state legislators something important: When you get a gift from lobbyists who want something in return, that is NOT a gift. THAT IS A BRIBE!!!

“Legislators, you are not gift getters, you are bribe takers…Stop telling yourselves that bribes don’t affect you. OF COURSE THEY DO!” said Santa during his press conference (full transcript available here). “Why do you think lobbyists give you things that you like? They are not Santa, they are not your friends, and they do not care about you. They want something from you and the government, that’s the whole point! Lobbyists are for-profit mercenaries. They are hired and armed with unlimited bribes and sent into your Harrisburg chambers in order to convince you to do what their bosses want.”

Santa called out the failures of House Majority Leader Rep. Kerry Benninghoff, who broke his promise to pass the Gift Ban in 2021, and Senate President Jake Corman, who has refused to even comment on the Gift Ban. Rep. Benninghoff and Sen. Corman would instead prefer to continue enjoying free food, drinks, theater and sports tickets, vacations, expensive gifts, and more from lobbyists.  

Is it any wonder that only 11% of Pennsylvanians think our government is NOT corrupt? Or that a recent poll showed that our own politicians and government are nearly tied with Covid 19 as Pennsylvanians’ biggest fear?

Our legislators are clearly NOT on Santa’s “Nice” list. But on December 14th, Santa gave Rep. Benninghoff and Sen. Corman a chance to change this. Santa and our MarchOnHarrisburg Anti-Corruption Carolers visited Rep. Benninghoff’s office to show their disappointment and  deliver a gift of candy coal and get a commitment from Benninghoff to bring the Gift Ban to a vote in January. Unfortunately, Rep. Benninghoff  was not in his office, and Santa is still waiting for answers.

Next we found out how threatened Sen. Corman really is by the prospect of losing the bribes from lobbyists that pad his lifestyle and income. Santa asked to meet with Sen. Corman, but Corman BLOCKED Santa from entering his office with the help of nearly a dozen Capitol police officers. Santa was denied to opportunity to leave a gift and note for Sen. Corman, which is ironic as Corman seemingly never turns down a “gift” from lobbyists.

With legislators who seem content to be on Santa’s naughty list, cashing in their relationships with lobbyists while so many Pennsylvanians suffer, is it any wonder that people are losing faith and trust in our government?

This distrust is only made worse when we hear that Sen. Corman, Rep. Benninghoff, and the rest of the legislature just got a $5,000 pay raise. This means that Rep Benninghoff will be making $138,000 in 2022. Don’t you think that is enough money for legislators to pay their own way, like the rest of us do, and STOP TAKING BRIBES?

It’s time to leave the gift-giving to Santa, not the lobbyists, and pass the Gift Ban. In the words of Santa: Ho, Ho, Ho, End the Quid Pro Quo!

Take action today at GiftBan.org!