From End Citizens United:
With members of Congress back in their districts for August recess, Representative Mike Lawler should have to answer for his corrupt record in Washington.
End Citizens United, a leading national anti-corruption organization, is highlighting three questions that reporters should ask Rep. Lawler before he jets back to Washington. In Congress, he has been focused on cashing in corporate PAC money and pandering to corporate donors even as families in his district deal with a rapidly worsening cost of living crisis.
These questions get to the heart of the pay-to-play approach to governing and how his relationships with special interests have influenced his votes in Congress at the expense of his constituents.
- You were a registered lobbyist for monopoly utility companies and the oil and gas industry. You then voted for bills that increased utility costs and stood by as New Yorkers’ rates rose by over 60%. How do you justify that to voters who are struggling to pay their energy bills?
- You have used your position on the House Financial Services Committee to enrich your donors while harming consumers, from cutting funding from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to eliminating caps on charges that big banks can impose on customers. When will you stop putting campaign donors over your own constituents?
- As a career politician, you’ve funneled $500,000 of campaign committee funds into your own political consulting firm, while owning a 50% stake at the time. What is your response to voters who see that as plain corruption?
In April, Rep. Lawler earned a spot on End Citizens United’s 2026 Most Corrupt Politicians List. The list highlights elected officials whose actions consistently align with personal interests over those of their constituents.
For 10 Years, End Citizens United (ECU) has been dedicated to combating the two biggest challenges facing our democracy: the corrosive impact of Big Money in politics and attempts to block access to the ballot box. Since its founding in 2015, ECU has had over 1.4 million donors with an average donation of just $14. The group has more than four million members nationwide and is one of the nation’s leading anti-corruption organizations.
Note: All of ECU’s endorsements are democrats