Washington, D.C. - In a new TV ad now airing statewide in Alaska, Campaign Money Watch, a nonpartisan campaign finance watchdog group, criticizes indicted Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) for putting the priorities of his big money donors from the insurance, health, and pharmaceutical industries over the needs of his constituents.    

Titled "Scratch," the television ad describes how Washington, DC works well for both big money contributors and politicians like Stevens who need that money for re-election campaigns, but not so well for average voters. The ad is the first wave of advertising the group has planned for this Fall, and can be seen at http://www.campaignmoney.org/stevens.

"Even as the well-publicized trial of Ted Stevens moves forward, we wanted to remind voted that the scandal in politics is not simply what is illegal, but what is done every day in Washington," said the group's director, David Donnelly. "Ted Stevens took nearly $600,000 from health and insurance interests, and voted in their favor over the needs of Alaskans. That's a scandal that too few politicians want to talk about, or, frankly, are willing to do anything to address."

Earlier this week, Sen. Stevens' recent indictment and long history of unethical actions landed him on a list of the most corrupt members of Congress released by another group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.  

"While Sen. Stevens has become a symbol of Washington's pay-to-play culture, let's not forget that the system is also corrupt," Donnelly continued. "His actions in failing to disclose gifts brought a legal indictment. His actions in favoring the HMOs, insurance companies, and drug corporations and their executives and PACs should bring a political indictment of him and his failure, so far, to support real reform."  

Campaign Money Watch is a project of the nonpartisan Public Campaign Action Fund. The organization works to hold politicians who are against comprehensive campaign finance reform accountable for where they get their political donations.

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