Every person accused of a crime or an ethics violation deserves a competent defense. Charlie Rangel's legal defense, fittingly, comes from K Street.
Two of the three firms providing legal counsel to Rep. Charlie Rangel, D-N.Y., in his pending ethics cases are lobbying firms. In fact, one firm, Oldaker, Belair & Wittie, conducts much of Rangel's political fundraising, while operating four different lobby shops.
But who's ultimately paying Rangel's legal bills? Mostly corporate and union political action committees along with individual lobbyists. Over the past six months, PACs and lobbyists have accounted for a majority of the money Rangel's campaign has raised this year, not counting transfers from Rangel's other fundraising operations (more on them below).
In turn, Rangel funnels his campaign cash into his legal defense. In 2009, three-fourths of Rangel's $2.16 million in campaign spending went to legal fees. The House Ethics Committee allows campaign funds for legal fees that are not "primarily personal in nature, such as a matrimonial action, or could result in a direct personal benefit for the Member." Otherwise, legal fees are a legitimate use of campaign cash because "the protection of a Member's presumption of innocence in such actions is a valid political purpose," the guidelines state.
That means any politically savvy donor who cut a check in 2010 to Rangel's reelection knew the donation was, in part, a contribution to Rangel's legal defense.
PACs and lobbying firms have given more than $120,000 to Rangel in the past six months while individual lobbyists have chipped in another $28,000.
All of these companies and lobbyists are savvy enough to know they're funding Rangel's legal defense.
This is why politicians like Rangel benefit when K Street gains clout. Starting this week, we'll find out if K Street is powerful enough to save Rangel.
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2 comments:
typical crooked democrat stooge !
Why doesn't the IRS EVER look into how these guys (Senators & Representatives) come into Congress as middle class citizens and take a job that, by their own whining complaints, doesn't pay very well, but years later are multi-millioniares, like Rangel, who owns apartment buildings (!?). Where does all that money come from?? And why doesn't it get any attention? If I don't pay EVERY dollar I owe in taxes, the IRS hunts me down like an escaped felon and threatens me with all sorts of punishments. If I show some unusual income (like a $10,000 bank deposit), the government DEMANDS proof of where I got it. Forces me to show its source. But these guys (Robert Dole was another example) go from worst to first IN CONGRESS (!??) and the IRS and the rest of our ever-vigilant government watchdogs (the same one who missed $8,700,000,000
(thats BILLION) in lost Iraqi funds) somehow DON'T SEE THAT?? EVERY SINGLE ONE of these politicians (spit the taste out of your mouth now) are thieves and crooks scamming the heck out of the us.
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