CA: Lobby firm at center of Lewis investigation announces breakup

The lobbying firm whose ties to Rep. Jerry Lewis, R-Redlands, are under investigation announced Friday it is splitting into two groups.

The three Republican named partners - including Lewis' friend and former California congressman Bill Lowery - will continue to lead the existing firm, while the two Democratic partners will form a separate partnership.

A statement from Copeland, Lowery, Jacquez, Denton & White attributed the decision to "the current media focus on the firm."

"All the partners remain focused on their client work, discussing issues on Capitol Hill, and working with regulatory agencies every single day," the statement said. "We continue to work on normal routine legislative funding issues, as well as other federal consulting and strategic advocacy on behalf of our clients."

The firm has 19 employees including 14 registered lobbyists. The Web site politicalmoneyline.com, which tracks political spending, ranked it 32nd among all lobby firms for the second half of 2005, in terms of revenue from clients. For that period the firm brought in $3.7 million.

Under the reorganization, Lowery, Jean Denton and Letitia White will lead the existing firm, and James M. Copeland and Lynn Jacquez will split off.

As part of the investigation, the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles has subpoenaed more than a half-dozen Southern California municipalities that hired Copeland Lowery in part to help them obtain federal "earmarks" - federal spending is targeted to individual projects in lawmakers' districts.

Spending bills that come through the House Appropriations Committee, which Lewis chairs, are the main vehicle for such spending. Copeland Lowery clients reaped many of these valuable projects at the same time that they, and employees of the firm, were donating to Lewis' campaign accounts.

Patrick Dorton, a spokesman for Copeland Lowery, declined comment Friday on whether the firm is cooperating in the investigation.

White is a former aide to Lewis known for her expertise with the earmarking process. She also co-owns a Washington house that was used as the address for a political action committee that made large payments to Lewis' stepdaughter for fundraising work.

Am I wrong to find it distressing that a lobbying firm is made up of both Dems and R's? That just tells me that there are no people of honest conviction in the lobbying business. I find lobbying very distasteful to start with. I want our elected officials to listen to their hometown folks who put them in office not a bunch of bought and paid for political hacks. A pox on them all!

I thought they must be larger than that based on the payout to Shockey. How can a firm with revenues this small afford the huge payouts and sustain a staff of 19 people? Does not compute.

Lewis aide corrects income report for 2004
WASHINGTON (AP) - Jeff Shockey, a top aide to House Appropriations Committee Chairman Jerry Lewis, R-Redlands, made $2 million as a lobbyist in 2004, not $1.5 million as he'd previously reported, according to an amended financial disclosure form filed Wednesday.
Shockey was working at Washington-based lobby firm Copeland, Lowery, Jacquez, Denton, & White, whose ties to Lewis are now under federal investigation. He left the firm at the beginning of last year to come back to Capitol Hill when Lewis became chairman of the Appropriations Committee.
In a letter explaining the amendment to his 2004 financial disclosure form, Shockey's attorney said $1.5 million was actually Shockey's 2003 salary and he mistakenly used it on his 2004 form because he had filed an extension for his 2004 taxes and hadn't yet calculated his income for that year.
In addition to his salary from Copeland Lowery, Shockey got a $2 million severance package when he left the firm. The severance payments were disclosed by his attorneys last week.

All I can say is let the investigation go thru its paces, just because something stinks, doesn't mean it's rotten, yaknow. ;-)

I wish the DOJ and FBI wasn't so caught up in having to do so many congressional probes but..

And when the hell are they gonna drop the Hammer on Perata, Damn!

I know they talked to some more folks recently , but Criminy,, this is 2 years its been going on..

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