THE BEST CONGRESS MONEY CAN BUY! Raided Lobby Firm Still a Force On Capitol Hill. “Even as news of the investigation into mega-lobby firm PMA Group grows, Democrats are fighting efforts to check the tarnished group’s influence. . . . In what could politely be described as a rearguard action, Democratic lawmakers have defeated an effort to start a congressional ethics investigation into the firm. PMA operated in DC for many years, and funnelled millions of dollars into dozens of lawmakers’ campaigns.” Read the whole thing.

Actually, I’m not sure they’re the best Congress that money can buy — just that they’re a Congress that money can buy . . . .

Meanwhile, Tom Coburn tried to ban firms under investigation from receiving earmarks, but that didn’t work:

Like the House, the Senate has opted to protect the clients of the PMA lobbying firm, whose contributions to Democrats are the subject of a federal investigation. Just over an hour ago, by a vote of 43 to 52, the Senate rejected Sen. Tom Coburn’s (R, Okla.) amendment to eliminate the PMA earmarks from the Omnibus bill.

Coburn’s statement is at the link.