Excerpt: If money is power, David Obey has held the keys to Washington influence as chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, which controls roughly 40% of the nation's $3.8 trillion annual budget.
The Wausau Democrat will be handing in those keys at the end of the year when he steps down from a 41-year congressional career. Politics aside, Obey's departure from the national stage means one thing for Wisconsin: the state's clout in the nation's capital is sure to fade.
"It's a tremendous blow to the state's prestige and its influence," said Ted Bornstein, a well-connected lobbyist and former chief of staff to two Wisconsin lawmakers.
Few people in Washington are as powerful as Obey. And his political power has translated into tons of money, untold sway and high-ranking allies for his home state of Wisconsin.
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