Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas) had a bad day yesterday. First, he apologized to BP. Then, he had to retract his apology in the hearing and then he had to do a written retraction through Rep. John Boehner's (R-Ohio) office like a scolded child.
We've put together an annotated video of the hearing yesterday. Check it out:

Our story on the amount of money he's received got lots of pick-up yesterday.

• David Donnelly was quoted in the Washington Post twice about Rep. Barton's campaign cash
• MSNBC used our data analysis in a short blog post
• Huffington Post and Fox News also picked up the story.

Of course, Rep. Barton isn't alone in taking special interest cash. Every day, members of Congress attend fundraisers and spend hours making calls to raise the amount of money necessary to run competitive campaigns for office. Unlike Rep. Barton, though, most members of Congress just know better than to make blatant examples of the influence of industry cash. That's why all of these members should co-sponsor and work to pass the Fair Elections Now Act, legislation that would sever the ties between members of Congress and campaign contributors. It's time we return to a government that is by, for, and of the people. It's time to make Congress accountable to us.