Famed California pollster Joe Shumate was found dead in his home one month before Election Day 2010, surrounded by sheets of polling data he labored over for the flailing Senate bid of Carly Fiorina.
Upon his death, Fiorina praised Shumate as “the heart and soul” of her team. She issued a news release praising him as a person who believed in “investing in those he worked with” and offering her “sincerest condolences” to his widow.
But records show there was something that Fiorina did not offer his widow: Shumate’s last paycheck, for at least $30,000. It was one of more than 30 invoices, totaling about $500,000, that the multimillionaire didn’t settle — even as Fiorina reimbursed herself nearly $1.3 million she lent the campaign. She finally cleared most of the balance in January, a few months before announcing her run for president. (our emphasis)She seems nice.
She also attracts the best people:
“People are just upset and angry and throwing her under the bus,” said Jon Cross, Fiorina’s operations director for her Senate campaign. “If we didn’t win, why do you deserve to get paid? If you don’t succeed in business, you shouldn’t be the first one to step up and complain about getting paid.” (our emphasis)Yes, indeedy, "Double" Cross! Why should anyone get paid for work they've done if they didn't "win." By definition they're "losers," amirite? With the exception of "Snarly" Carly, who paid herself back, of course. She didn't "win," but she's not a "loser" like those flunkies on her campaign! She also didn't "win" at Hewlett-Packard, but she got a $40 million golden parachute when she got fired, unlike the 30,000 "losers" who lost their jobs!
If that's not the Republican/ New Confederate/ Stupid Party zeitgeist of the last 40 years, we don't know what is.
(Photo: "What -- I was supposed to pay those losers?!")
