Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Robert R. Simmons on a single day last summer accepted a bundle of nearly $105,000 in campaign cash from contributors associated with the coal industry, Federal Election Commission records show.
The money, which amounted to 11 percent of the $967,907 Simmons collected in the third quarter, came from 108 individuals and three corporate political action committees linked to coal companies and businesses that service the coal mining industry in Pennsylvania, Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, West Virginia, and Utah.
About two months after his big payday, Simmons wrote in his campaign blog that he had concluded "I was wrong" about his previous support for what some environmentalists say would be critical regulation to fight global warming.
The so-called "cap-and-trade" concept, which the coal industry strongly opposes, would limit emissions of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gasses, in part by requiring fossil fuel power plants to pollute less.
The former 2nd District congressman reportedly has called it a "cap-and-tax" system that amounts to "a dangerous way to govern."
Simmons, who along with four other Republicans is seeking to unseat five-term Democratic Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, said in announcing his third-quarter fundraising results last month that Connecticut's Senate seat "cannot be bought."
The entire piece is eye-opening for those of us who thought Simmons was simply trying to impress the Teabag crowd by taking some far right positions on the environment. Now we have some damning evidence he did so for financial gain for his campaign.
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