Trent Lott starts to draw Republican pension

Trent Lott, now retired from his Senate seat, has embarked on what I call the Republican Fat-Cat pension plan. The Republican Fat-Cat pension plan is pretty simple. Spend your elected career advancing the interests of big donors (AKA big business) and when you retire you get on the pension plan. The Republican Fat-Cat retirement plan involves A) a fat paycheck on K Street as a lobbyist for the same corporations you shilled for on the Senate floor,or B) a high paying position in the industrial-military complex with some retired colonel who sells his country out on TV for dole. Trent opted for plan A.

Plan A required Trent to leave in a rush. He had good reason. New law effective on Jan 1, 2008 would have required the good Senator to wait 2 years after leaving office before entering the lobbying business (Republican Fat-Cat pension plan). Way to long to wait for this kind of bread. Good to see he joins John Breaux, a former DINO (Democrat In Name Only). Breaux's record is to the right of just about any Dem on capital hill in the last 20 years. As I said DINO.

Now there is this fine news from the AP and reaction from the Clarion Ledger.

At the time, Lott said he sought another term to continue his work on Capitol Hill on behalf of Mississippians struggling to recover from Hurricane Katrina.
Much work remained for Mississippi to recover and rebuild from Katrina when Lott stepped down.

The longtime Republican lawmaker left politics to become a partner in a Washington lobbying firm with former Sen. John Breaux, D-La.

Now comes word that Lott is converting $1.2 million left in the Senate campaign fund into a political action committee that will help solidify his influence on Capitol Hill in his new career as a lobbyist.

A former Lott staff member said the move came so Lott could increase the amount of money he gives to candidates. Individuals and individual campaign committees may contribute no more than $2,300 to a federal candidate each election. But the PAC limit is $5,000.

What Lott is doing is legal, but rather unseemly.