Free Republic

Harvey Whittemore, with his wife, Annette, on his right, jokes with his lead defense attorney, Dominic Gentile, during a news conference in Reno, Nev., on Wednesday, May 29, 2013, shortly after he was convicted of three federal counts of breaking campaign contribution laws by funneling nearly $150,000 to U.S. Sen. Reid, D-Nev., in 2007. Photo: Scott Sonner RENO, Nev. (AP) —Harvey Whittemore's lawyer says despite his client's illegal campaign fundraising conviction, the man prosecutors called "King of the Hill" in Nevada politics is a long way from prison.Whittemore, former head of a billion dollar development company, was convicted recently of...

Sen. Barbara Boxer says she is co-sponsoring the Genetically Engineered Food Right-to-Know Act in part because, with 26 states trying to pass legislation requiring said labeling, it makes more sense to have a uniform federal law. California's junior Democratic senator has a point. It's probably better for the folks who keep affordable food on American tables to have one big gun pointed at their collective head than 26 guns. Except that most of these guns aren't loaded, including the big gun. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., introduced a farm bill provision, which was designed to protect states that require labeling for...

In a stunning sign of the political resurgence of bankers, Wall Street lobbyists not only have the ear of lawmakers, they have their pens as well. Rather than leaving it to members of Congress to draft legislation that softens financial regulations, bank lobbyists are helping to write it themselves, emails reviewed by The New York Times show. One bill that sailed through the House Financial Services Committee this month was essentially written by lobbyists for giant Citigroup. After the House committee drafted a bill that would force regulators to exempt trades of certain types of derivative trading from the new...

A bipartisan group of 28 influential lawmakers have establish the first Sikh-American Congressional Caucus in the House of Representatives, with the objective of fighting hate crimes against the community and to work towards enlisting them in the army. Formally launched at the Capitol Hill yesterday, the first ever Sikh-American Congressional caucus is co-chaired by Congresswoman Judy Chu from the Democratic Party and David G Valadao from the Republican. Attended by eminent Sikh American leaders and organisations from across the country, the lawmakers also hosted a reception at the Capitol Hill in the evening. "Sikhs are suffering because many people do...

A few years ago, I wrote a book, "Jesus Wept" an American Story. The story, in part, was about Cherokee Chief John Ross, a 1/8th Cherokee blood, white, blue eyed greedy tyrant. The more time goes on, the more he reminds me of Barak Obama. He was put in power by Major Ridge and some other realistic Cherokees, who thought the tribe, which functioned under a constitutional government, would fare better in Washington DC if represented by Ross who would be identified more with the white leaders. And for a time, that seemed to work. Until Ross got the taste...

With Congress once again slouching toward immigration reform, it makes sense to look for who is lobbying lawmakers to shape the coming legislation. As it turns out, while Americans remain divided on immigration, the lobbyists are not. The Sunlight Foundation, a do-gooder government transparency and accountability outfit formed in 2006, on Monday released "Untangling the Webs of immigration Lobbying," a report examining the organizations that have led the charge for changing the rules on immigration to the United States. Sunlight dug through 8,000 lobbying reports filed since the last big push for immigration reform in 2007. Six-thousand seven-hundred and twelve...

There is no "set price" to meet with President Obama, White House press secretary Jay Carney said Monday amid continued outcry over the role of Organizing for Action, the outside group supporting the president's agenda. "Any notion that there is a set price for a meeting with the president of the United States is just wrong," Carney said during his daily briefing. Since OFA is intended to back the president's agenda, it makes sense that Obama would meet with the group, Carney said. "As anyone would expect, the president would likely meet with their representatives to discuss his agenda." "But,...

I received the info below from FNC’s Thomas Firth but it caught my attention so I thought I would post it. Note that Facebook played it both ways (also giving to Repubs, including Gov Romney) but gave generously to President Obama (numbers below.) Why does Facebook give to both political parties? Just in case Republicans won and they would then want a cozy relationship with the Republicans…and because it can (it has a ton of money.) Note also the info about its lobbyists…check out the jobs they held before became lobbyists for Facebook. Read and tell me what you think.

SNIP Hagel, however, has friends in Democratic lobbying circles. The powerful Washington D.C. organization known as the Podesta Group is reportedly asking defense contractors for financial support to run ads defending the Hagel nomination. Fox News White House Chief White House Correspondent Ed Henry reported on Friday: (2:15 in) "Sources confirm to Fox [that] Democratic super lobbyist Tony Podesta has been hired by a firm known as the Bipartisan Group to help mobilize support for Hagel. And defense contractors received calls this week urging them to be ready for a Hagel pick as soon as Monday, and asking them for...

But the sources say the new decision is driven by pragmatism: The president and his team just wrapped up the most expensive campaign in history — with costs topping $1 billion — and they’ve determined that their donors are simply tapped out. The cost of an Inauguration can run into the tens of millions. Obama spent $47 million in 2009. And raising that in a matter of six weeks is too difficult without throwing open the flood gates, said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The inaugural fundraising team will be screening each corporate donation. Those determined to...

Tuesday, November 13, 2012 GoLocalProv News Team A prominent Rhode Island lobbyist and Democratic fundraiser gave a $300,000 personal loan to the twin sister of Jill Kelley, the woman tied to the love affair that ended CIA Director David Petraeus’ career, court documents show. Bankruptcy records filed by Natalie Khawam last April list Gerald Harrington, the founder of the Capitol City Group, as an unsecured creditor on the loan. Khawam owes nearly $4 million in total. The loan was first reported by the New York Post. A message left at Harrington’s Providence law firm was not immediately returned. The Post...

It’s the latest Leftist talking point: Rick Santorum is a bit dangerous, a bit unhinged, deeply religious and dangerously fanatical, not to be trusted with the governance of our pluralistic republic, and certainly not with guardianship of the First Amendment protection of the freedom of religion. The prominent Leftist Muslim writer Reza Aslan has recently become a foremost exponent of these claims, although they did not by any means originate with him. Leftist journalists and Islamic supremacist spokesmen always march in lockstep, using the same talking points, as I’ve pointed out previously in connection with Islamic supremacist boy Reza Aslan’s...

WASHINGTON: Federal authorities on Monday arrested a prominent US-based pro-Pakistan activist associated with the Kashmiri separatist movement, accusing him of funneling money from the Pakistani spy agency ISI to lobby US decision-makers. In the process, the Obama administration's law enforcement brigade also blew open the Pakistan and its spy agency's two-decade long subversion of the so-called Kashmir cause. The FBI swooped down on the Virginia residence of Dr Ghulam Nabi Fai, a well-known representative of Kashmiri separatists in the US and detained him on charges of ''participating in a long-term conspiracy to act as agents of the Pakistani government in...

WASHINGTON // A Pakistani immigrant who hosted fundraisers for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is being sought by the FBI on allegations that he funneled illegal contributions to Clinton's political action committee and to Sen. Barbara Boxer's 2004 re-election campaign. Authorities say Northridge, Calif., businessman Abdul Rehman Jinnah, 56, fled the country shortly after being indicted on charges of engineering more than $50,000 in illegal donations to the Democratic committees. A business associate charged as Jinnah's co-conspirator has entered a guilty plea and is scheduled to be sentenced in Los Angeles next week. ...The case has transformed Jinnah from a political...

Through their U.S. front groups, Muslim radicals overtaking the Middle East have found support in the Obama administration The last time we saw one whole despotic region of the world come tumbling down we could name the heroes and the moments that propelled it: An electrician named Lech Walesa, jumping a wall at the Gdansk shipyard. Boris Yeltsin atop a tank in front of the Russian White House, defying the Communist old guard in 1991. Pastor Laszlo Tokes, refusing an eviction notice from his Romanian flat as crowds of demonstrators gathered. A playwright named Vaclav Havel before a joint session...

Thursday, July 8, 2010 A former congressman pleaded guilty Wednesday to serving as an unregistered agent in Washington for a Missouri-based Islamic charity that the federal government said had ties to international terrorism. It was an odd outcome for Mark D. Siljander, who said he wanted to help bridge the gulf between Muslims and Christians. A Republican who attained one of Michigan's congressional seats from 1981 to 1987 with assistance from the Moral Majority, Siljander was outspoken about conservative social issues. Siljander confirmed in a Kansas City, Mo., court that he contacted members of Congress in an effort to lift...

Aides to President Barack Obama used personal email accounts to contact pharmaceutical companies and deliberately scheduled meetings in coffee shops away from the White House in order to skirt disclosure rules, according to a Congressional report on Wednesday. Among the most damaging findings are emails from Jim Messina – the former White House deputy chief of staff who now manages the president's re-election campaign – to a drugs lobbyist in the days before Mr Obama's health care reforms passed Congress in 2010.In an email from his personal account, Mr Messina promised "I will roll [Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi]...

I’m getting sick of the rewriting of 2008 presidential campaign history as K Street Republicans continue to assault Sarah Palin in the fear that a similarly conservative Republican will rise to the top of the VP sweepstakes.   It has been so fashionable in D.C. Republican circles to bash the Palin nomination as a mistake, ill-conceived or even disastrous, that even Dick Chaney has gotten into the act.   These self-serving attempts to change history are nothing more than a smear campaign designed to influence the Romney VP pick by obscuring the truth that the choice of Sarah Palin to...

Providing "suds and grub" at a townhouse on Capitol Hill, a lobbying firm for Barack Obama's ObamaCare is asking supporters to get "gussied up in your Sunday jorts, mullets, and fullets and come on down to the White Trash Reception." Mocking NASCAR is a big belly laugh with elitists on Capitol Hill.  Sounds racist to me. See a Jack Abramhoff video below. Lobbyists are gearing-up for a major push, even though many backed-off awaiting the Supreme Court ruling. Considering that not a single Republican voted for ObamaCare, and every Democrat voted for it, how will lobbying be effective...now? Are they...

Homeland Security: President Obama promised lobbyists wouldn't run his White House. They're just doing it from across the street — at a Shariah-compliant coffee chain tied to a radical jihadist group. That's right: According to the New York Times, prominent K Street lobbyists are buttonholing Obama officials at a Caribou Coffee shop on Pennsylvania Avenue, raising far more than just ethics questions. What the Times story neglects to mention is that Caribou Coffee is a Shariah-compliant firm owned by an Islamic bank based in Bahrain. One of its founders and a current adviser are leaders in the radical Muslim Brotherhood....

An interactive and searchable database of White House visitor logs is turning up some interesting findings and reveals a “steady stream of lobbyists” visiting the Obama White House, reports the Washington Post. For example, AFL-CIO lobbyist Bill Samuel visited the White House over 50 times, and American Civil Liberties Union lobbyist Laura Murphy visited almost as frequently. By comparison, Speaker of the House John Boehner has only visited the White House 23 times.

Corruption: A new study documents that access to the White House is based on how much money is put into the president's campaign coffers. At least the Lincoln Bedroom isn't for rent — yet. During the Clinton administration, when the Lincoln Bedroom in the White House became a favorite place for campaign contributors to rest their weary wallets, the infamous Johnny Chung made the observation that the White House was like a subway turnstile: You put your token in and you got inside. An analysis of White House access by the New York Times suggests that hope and change has...

Report highlights which lobbying firms back Romney in 2012 Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney is the clear front-runner in picking up support from lobbyists at some of K Street’s most profitable firms, according to a report released last week by First Street Research Group. That’s based on the number of lobbyists in those firms who are advising Romney’s campaign, collecting or “bundling” contributions for him, and contributing money to the campaign. First Street, the political intelligence unit of CQ Press, compiled data from Federal Election Commission filings and conducted independent research on individual lobbyists who Romney and Rick Santorum have...

In the months leading up to the Federal Communications Commission’s December 21, 2010 “net neutrality” vote, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski’s appointment book contained two key meetings not listed in Commission’s legal filings, The Daily Caller has learned. Genachowski’s appointment book, obtained through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request and provided to TheDC by the National Legal and Policy Center, showed two meetings that were not listed in the Commission’s ex parte filings in the month prior to the “net neutrality vote.” “Net neutrality” is where Internet traffic management policies of Internet service providers (ISPs) are governed by the FCC....

He promised there wouldn’t be lobbyists. Not a one. But less than a week into Barack Obama’s presidency (a week!), the White House had hired at least a dozen of them. They granted exceptions for some, and for others they exploited loopholes in the administration’s own self-written, self-imposed rules. Anyone taken by surprise by the more recent White House scandals—Solyndra, Operation Fast and Furious, the downfall of Obama’s “Wall Street Guy” Jon Corzine—really shouldn’t have been surprised at all. That early ethical backpedalling was excellent, if not unfortunate, foreshadowing of what was to come. Over the last three years, Barack...

Link only, per FR posting rules

Now that Rick Perry and Herman Cain are seeing their stars fade, at least among the pundit class that shapes the popular news, some political observers are speculating that Newt Gingrich could be the next conservative hope for President. In the CNBC Republican Debate on Wednesday evening in MIchigan, Wall Street Journal Editorial writer John Harwood asked Newt Gingrich about his former consultant relationship with the mortgage facilitator Freddie Mac. Conservatives and Libertarians blame the Federal Government for the housing crisis that hit in 2007 and continues today. They believe the Federal Government created the housing bubble by mandating that...

The bipartisan debt panel to nowhere is exactly where K Street lobbyists want it to be: hopelessly deadlocked. A November 23 deadline for agreement on $1.2 trillion in budget savings is looming, but no real reductions in the size, scope or spending of government are on the table. Instead, we are witnessing another obscene special-interest splurge to preserve the status quo. All in the name of "reform," of course. The only thing "super" about the so-called budget control super committee is the size of lobbying muscle exerted on its members. Almost 100 registered lobbyists who are former employees of super...

In 2007, the year before Barack Obama was elected President, the liberal advocacy organization Public Citizen’s “White House For Sale” website was actively seeking change in what it viewed as onerous lobbying activities, particularly bundling.  Its lead headline read: Bundling for Favors:  Open the Books on Bundled Campaign Contributions And its opening paragraph succinctly described bundling as: “the activity of fundraisers who pool a large number of campaign contributions from political action committees (PACs) and individuals. Bundlers, who are often corporate CEOs, lobbyists, hedge fund managers or independently wealthy people, are able to funnel far more money to campaigns than they could...

Do Obama's big donors break his no-lobbyist pledge? CBS News President Obama's re-election campaign is pushing back against a New York Times report that suggests Mr. Obama may not be meeting his own standards when it comes to keeping corporate lobbyists out of his campaign.

The collapse of Solyndra looks inevitable in retrospect — and for auditors who reviewed their loan application that the Obama White House expedited and to the employees who worked there, it looked inevitable before it happened, too. This has many wondering just what business model Solyndra used to keep the company going as long as it did. The New York Times figures out that Solyndra’s execs used a tested-and-true business method called Lobby For Dollars — and that they kept using this model even as the company disintegrated: According to records filed with the Clerk of the House and a...

Today Perry speaks of Washington as an alien land, inhabited by irresponsible politicians. In his most recent book, Fed Up!, Perry criticizes President George W. Bush for giving free rein to “spendthrift congressional Republicans.” “Ultimately, the record is fairly unforgiving for Republicans — particularly in Congress — who have been in power in Washington over the last decade or so,” Perry wrote in 2010. “They haven’t just spent our money wildly — they have blatantly ignored our core founding principles.” This is the same message that Perry has brought to the campaign trail since the announcement of his bid for...

Top 10 Industry Contributors to Super Committee Members Industry Totals Lawyers/Law Firms $31,529,149 Securities & Investment         $11,221,416 Democratic/Liberal $9,647,264 Health Professionals $9,321,588 Real Estate $8,793,350 Education $8,568,460 Misc. Business $7,902,021 Business Services $6,563,524 Women's Issues $6,396,728 Insurance $5,693,595

Rep. Xavier Becerra — or, to be more precise, lobbyists working on his behalf — wasted no time Thursday capitalizing on the California congressman’s appointment to the congressional super committee. A little over two hours after Becerra was named to the powerful panel, Investment Company Institute’s Jim Hart sent out an email encouraging attendance for the trade group’s upcoming $1,500 per person fundraiser based on Becerra’s new found status as one of the elite 12. “We will host an event for Congressman Xavier Becerra, not only Vice Chairman of the Democratic Caucus but also who has just been named to...

Through a nonprofit, private donors are expected to cover the $3,000-a-month rent, along with utilities and other expenses, on Gov. Jerry Brown's loft in Sacramento. Reporting from Sacramento -- Gov. Jerry Brown will look to a group of private donors — presently refusing to reveal their identities — to pay his rent at the luxury loft in downtown Sacramento where Brown and his wife live while in town. Donors are contributing to a nonprofit formed specifically to cover the costs of Brown's $3,000-a-month, 1,450-square-foot apartment. In the past, the practice of having private donors pay for the governor's residence has...

The Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) has expressed concern at the appointment of Rabbi Richard Jacobs as head of the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ). Included among our concerns is the fact that Rabbi Jacobs is a member of the Rabbinic Cabinet of J Street, the extremist, George Soros-funded lobby group that takes positions to the left of the Israeli Labor and far-left Meretz parties, recently opposed sanctions on Iran, and urged President Barack Obama not to veto a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning as “illegal” Jewish homes and communities in Judea, Samaria and eastern Jerusalem. Jacobs is also a...

I love teachers. I really do. And I'm sure that most are overworked and underpaid. Certainly, no one is getting rich from teaching kids. I applaud the hardworking teachers across this land. But, as has happened in Wisconsin, when teachers unions muscle legislators like the Mafia and Democrats abandon their voting posts because they don't like projected outcomes, haven't we abandoned the very foundational principles of our republic? Where were the "be civil" mainstream media police last Friday morning, when union demonstrators screamed at legislators on the floor of the Wisconsin Assembly while they voted? More proof of union dominance...

From senators to lobbyists in one week flat. Bob Bennett of Utah and Byron Dorgan of North Dakota have been hired as senior policy advisers by Arent Fox, the firm said on its website Tuesday. The announcement comes a week to the day after the pair ended their congressional careers. Bennett, a Republican, and Dorgan, a Democrat, will work together to expand "the firm's already thriving government relations practice," the statement said. The news was first reported by The New York Times.

House Democrats are hiring a top attorney from President Barack Obama’s National Security Council to help lead their charge against Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa. Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), the top Democrat on the committee, has tapped David Rapallo, an experienced congressional investigator, to be the Democratic staff director for the oversight panel, which will be the center of attention for a wide range of investigations when Republicans take control of the House. It’s a job familiar to the University of California-trained attorney: He spent 11 years as a minority subcommittee director, later serving as Democratic Rep....

Wikileaks continues to rock the political world by shedding light on conspiracies, corruption and cover-ups. The latest batch of diplomatic cables released by Wikileaks reveals what can only be characterized as a U.S.-led conspiracy to force GMOs onto European countries by making those countries pay a steep price if they resist. The cable reveals the words of Craig Stapleton, the US ambassador to France, who was pushing the commercial interests of the biotech industry by attempting to force GMOs into France. In his own words (below), he expresses his frustration with the idea that France might pass environmental laws that...

Dear Tea Party voter: You've been had. When the good people of South Dakota voted last month to send Republican Kristi Noem to Congress, they probably believed she would give no quarter to the lobbyists and special-interest groups who enjoyed, as she put it, "throwing money at the feet of a member of Congress." But since she defeated Democratic Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (in part by making an issue of Sandlin's marriage to a lobbyist), Noem has hired her new chief of staff from ... a lobbying firm! And on Tuesday afternoon, she was the guest of honor at a...

Tax Cut Bill Loaded With Deals for Lobbyists, LawmakersAssociated Press Published December 11, 2010 WASHINGTON -- In the spirit of the holiday season, President Obama's tax-cut deal with Republicans is becoming a Christmas tree tinseled with gifts for lobbyists and lawmakers. But that hardly stopped the squabbling on Friday, with Bill Clinton even back at the White House pleading the president's case. While Republicans sat back quietly, mostly pleased, Democrats and other liberals were going at each other ever so publicly. As Clinton lectured on Obama's behalf, Vermont independent Bernie Sanders castigated the agreement for the TV cameras in the...

SACRAMENTO -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is leaving office just as he came in -- with a party paid for by outside interest groups. Schwarzenegger's spokesman, Aaron McLear, said the governor plans to attend .. but is not involved in the planning. The California Chamber of Commerce and the NAACP, both Schwarzenegger supporters, are among those seeking contributions for the Dec. 16 event at the Sacramento Convention Center. The Sacramento Bee reported that one appeal is seeking tax-deductible donations of $25,000 "for this memorable evening."

TSA’s other body-scanner contractor is Rapiscan Systems Inc. In 2009, the company was awarded an agreement that could be worth up to $173 million. And like L-3, Rapiscan has a notable K Street presence. Holland & Knight, Rapiscan’s outside lobbying firm, has earned $480,000 in fees from the company since May 2008, according to lobbying disclosure records. David Whitestone, a former aide to Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va.), and John Buscher, once the chief lobbyist for United Airlines, are lobbying for the company. Overall, Rapiscan has spent close to $3.6 million on lobbying since 2007, according to records.

One interest group is very upset about Senator Jim DeMint’s (R-SC) plan to force a vote in the Senate Republican Conference for a two year earmark moratorium — Lobbyists. According to The Hill, the lobbying group that represents lobbyists are very angry and worried that the easy money days of earmarking for dollars is over. Yes, even lobbyists have lobbyist in Washington, D.C. The head of the American League of Lobbyists is blasting the proposed earmark bans in Congress, saying lawmakers are letting down their constituents by not working to fund projects in their districts. Dave Wenhold, the league’s president,...

What on Earth Happened to the New York GOP? A dozen years ago Republicans dominated state politics. It doesn't appear they'll be a factor this fall. SEPTEMBER 18, 2010 By JOHN FUND New York Almost every state in the nation features a competitive race for governor or the Senate this fall. But not New York. Though Republicans are running for governor and both U.S. Senate seats—one to fill Hillary Clinton's unexpired term—polls show none have much of a chance of winning. A dozen years ago, Republicans held a majority of New York's statewide elected offices and controlled the state Senate....

Tea Party's Rise Gives Business Pause * BUSINESS * SEPTEMBER 17, 2010 By BRODY MULLINS and NAFTALI BENDAVID Business leaders and lobbyists are increasingly worried that the election of tea party-backed Republican candidates to Congress might threaten their priorities next year, fearing that these candidates' anti-spending fervor and opposition to special tax breaks would jeopardize prized programs. Business leaders clearly prefer a Republican-controlled Congress to a Democratic one, judging from their statements, endorsements and campaign contributions. They cite low taxes, less regulation and certainty in the business environment as among their top priorities in Washington, and many see Republicans as...

It has begun. Republican Senate aides who desperately want the majority back so they can add an extra zero to their eventual K-Street salary package once they stop prostituting themselves to lobbyists and instead become lobbyists prostituting themselves to squishy Republicans are attacking Jim DeMint. In addition to their own self-interest, you can be sure they are expressing their bosses’ frustrations.Now, you and I both know that Jim DeMint swooping in at the last minute to endorse Christine O’Donnell had as much to do with her victory as a butterfly flapping its wings in China 340 years ago last Monday....

If you read this weekend’s New York Times’ hit job on would-be Speaker John Boehner and his “lobbyist friends,” you might think, as the reporter clearly thinks, that John Boehner is cozier with lobbyists than most powerful politicians are. But did you know: Nancy Pelosi has raised almost twice as much money from lobbyists this election as Boehner has? At least 18 House Democrats have raised more lobbyist cash this election than Boehner has. Chuck Schumer and Harry Reid have pocketed more lobbyist cash in the past 18 months than Boehner has raised in the past 6 elections, combined?

Let's go back to those hopey-changie days of the Obama campaign for president when he railed constantly against all those "special interests" and eeeevil lobbyists that he claimed were ruining the political process. Let us recall that once elected he claimed he'd have the "strictest ethics rules" of any president ever. Obama has made sure that his message has been anti-special interests, anti-lobbyists, anti-business-as-usual… heck just plain anti-business, for that matter. It’s all been quite a show. Unfortunately for all the talk his actions speak to the opposite of his spin -- more on that in a moment. But even...