Back-scratch Fever

When Tom DeLay scratches your back, he usually expects a full-body, deep-tissue massage in return.

Fight disinformation: Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.


Below, a look at how well some congressional Republicans learned from the master, based on how much they took from DeLay’s Americans for a Republican Majority PAC and how much they pitched in when he got into legal hot water. Illustration by Erik T. Johnson.

 

Members of Congress

Amount received from DeLay’s PAC

Amount given to DeLay’s legal defense fund

Leader’s Pets

Rep. John Doolittle (Calif.)

$4,355

$10,000

Ex-Rep. Billy Tauzin (La.)

$10,000

$15,000

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (Calif.)

$5,000

 

$5,000

Rep. Henry Bonilla (Texas)

$20,000

$15,000

Bet Hedgers

Rep. Tom Feeny (Fla.)

$10,000

$5,000

Rep. Kenny Marchant (Texas)

$10,000

$5,000

Rep. Jo Bonner (Ala.)

$10,000

$5,000

Yellow-Bellied Ingrates

Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite (Fla.)

$20,000

$1,000

Rep. Jim Ryun (Kan.)

$25,000

$1,000

Rep. Bob Beauprez (Colo.)

$30,000

$1,000

Rep. Rob Simmons (Conn.)

$39,500

$1,000

Rep. Robin Hayes (N.C.)

$39,722

$1,000

All figures 2000-2005. Sources: Public Citizen, Center for Responsive Politics

Fact:

Mother Jones was founded as a nonprofit in 1976 because we knew corporations and billionaires wouldn't fund the type of hard-hitting journalism we set out to do.

Today, reader support makes up about two-thirds of our budget, allows us to dig deep on stories that matter, and lets us keep our reporting free for everyone. If you value what you get from Mother Jones, please join us with a tax-deductible donation today so we can keep on doing the type of journalism 2022 demands.

payment methods

Fact:

Today, reader support makes up about two-thirds of our budget, allows us to dig deep on stories that matter, and lets us keep our reporting free for everyone. If you value what you get from Mother Jones, please join us with a tax-deductible donation today so we can keep on doing the type of journalism 2022 demands.

payment methods

We Recommend

Latest

Sign up for our free newsletter

Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

Get our award-winning magazine

Save big on a full year of investigations, ideas, and insights.

Subscribe

Support our journalism

Help Mother Jones' reporters dig deep with a tax-deductible donation.

Donate