What do candidates for safe congressional seats do with the campaign war chests they raise? Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr., D-NJ, according to the Bergen, County, NJ Record, dipped into the $1.4 million he raised in the most recent election cycle to hire Irish dancers, a cigar roller, and spent $23,000 on parties for fellow Democrats at conventions in Atlantic City and Denver .

In the January 4 edition, the Record's Herb Jackson offers a revealing look at the campaign expenditures of Pascrell and his fellow New Jersey Democrat, Rep. Steve Rothman, and found that only a small share of both members' campaign funds actually went to promote their own candidacies. For Pascrell, that share was just 22 per cent, with another 24 percent going for fundraising expenses--including consultants, catering and entertainment. For both candidates, the largest expenses were contributions to other Democrats, at the local and federal level. Pascrell also used funds to underwrite local charities and organizations.
                                                                                                              -- Julie Kosterlitz