The Book of Bob - excerpts from Bob Packwood's diaries

Washington Monthly, Nov, 1995 by Jennifer Shecter

October 6, 1992: Although the NRA only officially gave $2,000 to Packwood's PAC in 1992, the gun lobby spent $22,613 on the mailing being examined in this entry. Despite the contribution being registered as an independent expenditure, it is clear from this excerpt that Packwood solicited the NRA's cooperation.

March 27, 1993: Since the late 1970s, members of Congress have been allowed to solicit money for their legal defense. By the time Packwood went before the Ethics Committee, he had raised $636,000 through donations from over 1,200 sources including: Jack Valenti, president of the Motion Picture Association of America ($500); William Gradison, former GOP congressman and president of Health Insurance Association of America ($2,000); Dwayne Andreas, Archer Daniels Midland CEO ($5,000); and Senator Robert Bennett (R-Utah) ($10,000). Contributors did not donate to Packwood's fund just out of the goodness of their hearts. They had a vested interested in keeping Packwood in a position to influence legislation on the powerful Senate Finance Committee and elsewhere. One might wonder: Why would a fellow senator give Packwood money? Simple: Like private lobbyists, congressmen want to be able to count on certain members' votes on important bills.

May 28, 1993: Packwood is presumably referring to the American Trucking Association in this excerpt.

June 14, 1993: "Striker replacement" refers to a bill that would have allowed employers to hire permanent replacements for striking workers. The Senate bill, S55, prohibiting striker replacement was blocked by Republicans, including Packwood, last year.

July 28, 1993: Packwood regularly attended the Wednesday Club--a weekly lunch open to all Senate Republicans to discuss their mutual concerns. In this case, the concern was congressmen's use of their offices for political purposes--an egregious violation of the law that nearly cost Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson her political career.

January 4, 1993: Packwood should "live quite happily" on the $88,922 annual pension he will start receiving immediately. He would have been entitled to this benefit even if he had been officially expelled from the Senate. Congressional pensions are only suspended if members of Congress are convicted of a crime.

Jennifer Shecter is an intern at The Washington Monthly.