Chambliss has clearly pledged allegiance to Big Business

Saxby Chambliss has spent the last six years as a loyal servant of Big Business. He has worked to deliver whatever corporate executives wanted, no matter how greedy, selfish or dangerous their wish list. He has bent the rules to accommodate the captains of commerce.

Now that the Republican senator finds himself facing an unexpected challenge from Democrat Jim Martin, he’s trying to persuade Georgians that he’s spent his tenure working hard for the little guy. Don’t be fooled. Chambliss is the lap dog of corporate interests.

CYNTHIA TUCKER
MY OPINION

• E-mail Tucker

Recent columns:
[an error occurred while processing this directive]

Consider the senator’s contemptuous treatment of a whistle-blower who had warned Imperial Sugar executives of the dangers of their Port Wentworth facility before an explosion killed 14 people and seriously injured dozens of others in February. When Graham H. Graham, vice president of operations for Imperial Sugar, appeared before Congress in July to testify about rampant violations of safety standards, Chambliss treated him as if he’d caused the explosion himself.

Chambliss: “Why didn’t you, Mr. Graham, go to the management of Imperial Sugar Company and say, ‘By golly, if you don’t shut this plant down now and clean this up, you’re going to have a dangerous situation to occur. …”

Graham: “I did do that. …”

Chambliss: “Mr. Graham, here we are six months after the incident occurred, and you’re still working for the same company that you say you gave that kind of mandate to. It gives me cause to question your sincerity and what you’ve had to say about this.”

Chambliss, who all but called Graham a liar, clearly wanted to discredit Graham’s testimony in hopes of sparing Imperial Sugar any sanctions. That’s just one example of his willingness to travel the low road on behalf of Big Business. But it’s not the only example. Once upon a time, as a member of the U.S. House, Chambliss excoriated officials of the old Immigration and Naturalization Service for daring to round up illegal farmworkers. In 1998, when INS agents conducted raids on Vidalia onion fields in southeast Georgia, Chambliss denounced the agency, accusing its officers of “bullying tactics.” Agribusiness interests wanted to keep those low-paid workers in the fields, and Chambliss came to the rescue.

In recent years, with the Republican base radiating hostility toward illegal workers, Chambliss has been much more careful to emphasize the need for border control. But if Chambliss really wanted to curb illegal border-crossings, he’d target employers who hire illegally. Of course, he’s not going to do that.

Nor is he going to stop shilling for an outrageous form of corporate welfare — farm subsidies. In a rare disagreement with President Bush, Chambliss supported the bloated farm bill, with its subsidies to the wealthy — some of whom are clearly abusing the program.

It’s bad enough that the “legitimate” subsidies go to farmers who don’t need taxpayer handouts. Worse still, a recent federal investigation shows that poor management of the crop subsidy program has allowed millionaire farmers to receive money for which they didn’t qualify.

While Chambliss has said precious little about those abuses, he has stood firm against expanding a program to help provide health insurance for children from working-class families. That sensible program allows parents to buy insurance at a low cost, and Georgia’s version, PeachCare, has proved a boon to parents trying desperately to find health insurance they could afford.

Perhaps it’s no surprise that Chambliss could be so callous toward PeachCare. It’s unlikely he runs across many Georgia families struggling to buy health insurance for their kids.

His post as head of the Republican Majority Fund — a political action committee that raises money to support GOP candidates — allows him to spend much of his leisure time playing golf and schmoozing with lobbyists for corporate interests. Under Chambliss’ leadership, the fund has spent about 68 percent of its money on travel, meals and big golf events, in addition to administrative expenses, according to Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter Alan Judd.

With economic news getting worse and worse for average Georgians, it’s time for a senator who looks out for the hardworking Joes and Janes who are barely making ends meet. Martin is much more likely to do that than Chambliss.