Tim Johnson handily won a return to his seat in the next Congress. His seat always seems safe despite the fact that legions of Americans are expending more and more energy on suppressing gag reflexes whenever the name of Johnson’s party is mentioned.
Champaign-Urbana's daily broadsheet has given the congressman a gushy endorsement. On the money front, Johnson has over $163,000 on hand, while a search of Federal Election Commission records on his challenger, Steve Cox, produces nothing. Johnson’s district is also suspiciously shaped with a tendril that snakes along the Indiana border, which leaves one to wonder if it isn’t horrendously gerrymandered.
Two weeks ago, as stocks tumbled and a sense of malaise set in nation-wide, Congress scrambled to get together a plan aimed at avoiding a complete economic meltdown. The gentleman from Illinois’ 15th district delivered a rebuke to Washington’s power brokers by casting a “nay” vote on the initial financial bailout package, which failed to clear the House. However, the sweeteners thrown into the revised package weren’t enough to keep Rep. Tim Johnson from casting another “nay” vote.
A statement released by Johnson criticized the bailout plan as unfair to taxpayers in monetary cost and principle. In the same statement he also claimed to have argued for greater regulation of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the past.
During last week’s presidential debate, Republican Presidential Nominee John McCain managed to snare his Democratic counterpart into a long and testy exchange regarding the practice of congressional earmarks, in which McCain blasted their impact on federal budgets.
Regardless of whether you think the practice is enriching or bankrupting the country, Illinois’ 15th Congressional District is getting it’s cut.
Under increased scrutiny of the earmark process, Congress recently agreed to shine some light into the smoke-filled back rooms where power brokers wheel and deal away the taxpayers money. Members of congress are now required to disclose their earmarks. So where is Congressman Johnson sending your money?
As energy prices continue to put the screw down on America, its politicians continue to fling about questionable statements concerning energy policy and push even more dubious legislation.
Where does Rep. Tim Johnson stand?
Johnson probably wasn’t chanting “drill baby, drill” during the Republican National Convention. He’s not a global warming naysayer. He doesn’t want to drill in Artic National Wildlife Refuge. He subscribes to the Midwestern orthodoxy on ethanol. He wants to stick it to OPEC and energy speculators. Johnson is also a fan of the nuclear energy churned out by Exelon (who are also fans of him).
Who is Timothy V. Johnson?
He represents you in Congress. Although just one voice among 435, the man has leverage in deciding where your tax money goes, how (and if) the environment is protected, what laws will be applied to what parts of a woman’s body, who will be bombed, and what wall separates the lives of private citizens from the prying eye of the National Security Agency.
Being a member of congress is an important job. So SP.com politely asks, "Who is Tim Johnson, and what is he doing in Washington in our name?"
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