LAT: Kerry Lobbied for Contractor Who Made Illegal Contributions

[RamboLiberal]

http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/2004/la-na-kerry19feb19,1,745120.story?coll=la-home-headlines

Massachusetts Sen. John F. Kerry sent 28 letters in behalf of a San Diego defense contractor who pleaded guilty last week to illegally funneling campaign contributions to the Massachusetts senator and four other congressmen.

Members of Congress often write letters supporting constituent businesses and favored projects. But as the Democratic presidential front-runner, Kerry has promoted himself as a candidate who has never been beholden to campaign contributors and special interests.

Between 1996 and 1999, Kerry participated in a letter-writing campaign to free-up federal funds for a missile system that defense contractor Parthasarathi "Bob" Majumder was trying to build for U.S. warplanes.

Majumder's firm, Science and Applied Technology Inc., was paid more than $150 million to design and develop the program. But the program ran into some stumbling blocks at the Pentagon. Kerry's letters were sent to fellow members of Congress — and to the Pentagon — while Majumder and his employees were donating money to the senator, court records show. During the three-year period, Kerry received about $25,000 from Majumder and his employees, according to Dwight L. Morris & Associates, which tracks campaign donations.

[IndianaGreen]

1. I rather this info about Kerry comes out now...

than to have an Eagleton-like event after the convention.

[revcarol]

2. Can you post this also in in the 2004 forum?

think some might like to see it.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

3. That whore...trying to ge jobs for his state!

Federal prosecutors initially determined that $13,000 of the donations were illegally reimbursed,.....They said there was no evidence Kerry and other members of Congress would have known that.


One of the subcontractors working on the guided missile project, Millitech, was based in Northampton, Mass.

Campaign senior advisor Michael Meehan said Kerry was concerned that the military project was on hold and might jeopardize work for people in his home state.

Snippets from the article

[Deaner1971]

13. Tell me that was sarcasm...

Right?

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

14. It was...I promise

The article makes it clear in the body that Kerry was looking to bring jobs to his state, donated the money to charity once it was determined to be illegal and could NOT have known the source of the illegalities.

[David Dunham]

4. This Story Has Limited Staying Power. No Unlawful Kerry Act Alleged

[Pab Sungenis]

6. Maybe nothing illegal....

But it does play into the hands of the people portraying Kerry as a tool of the special interests.

Funny how this comes out after Dean drops his candidacy. Hmm? More fodder for the "media out to destroy" conspiracy people.

[sangh0]

12. I doubt Bush* can pull off depicting Kerry as "tool of special interests"

The only ones who will be affected by that will be the Repugnant choir and the Democratic circular firing squad

[feistydem]

5. Interesting stuff you left out of your posting...

"Kerry wrote other letters to Republican and Democratic senators on the appropriations committee, asking that they include $55 million in the 1998 spending bill for 'an important military research and development program that will greatly improve the self-protection capability of our close air support aircraft.'"

"He wrote again in 1998, urging that senators give the program an additional $15 million.Meehan, his campaign advisor, said Wednesday that Kerry felt that, as a Massachusetts lawmaker, he should question why the money was being held up."

"'Congress had appropriated funds, but the Pentagon was slow to release the money. Kerry and others wrote to ask why,' Meehan said, characterizing the letters as 'the battle of the legislature vs. a particular branch of the government.'"

Also...

"The U.S. has long wanted a missile that will eliminate this threat to U.S. warplanes. By the mid-1990s, Majumder's project had gained a sympathetic hearing from two local members of Congress, both of whom specialize in matters of defense and military technology."

"'He came up with an idea to solve a problem that the big boys (such as Lockheed and Raytheon) couldn't,' said Hunter, now chairman of the House Armed Services Committee."

"Cunningham, a decorated Navy pilot from Vietnam, said the technology is crucial to saving the lives of pilots and ensuring the success of combat missions that include air strikes. The Department of Defense has continued to fund the Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile to Alliant Techsystems, the Minnesota defense firm that bought Majumder's company after the government began its investigation into illegal contributions. Work has continued and tests on the system are set for next year."

Link added on edit: http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/2004/la-na-kerry19feb19,1,2918350,print.story?coll=la-home-headlines

This is the DEMOCRATIC Underground, right? Just wanted to make sure I didn't accidentally end up on a Republican site.

[David Dunham]

7. Edwards got contributions unlawfully reimbursed by rich trial lawyers.

This story was reported in the Washington Post in 2003. Google it.

[David Dunham]

8. Wash Post Story on Illegal Contributions to John Edwards.

Law Firm's Donations To Edwards Probed
Justice Dept. Reviewing Contributions
By Thomas B. Edsall
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, April 24, 2003; Page A04


The Justice Department's Criminal Division has initiated an investigation into contributions made by employees of a prominent Little Rock law firm to the presidential campaign of Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.).




The investigation was prompted by news reports about $2,000 contributions to the Edwards campaign made by four legal assistants at the Turner & Associates firm. One donor, Michelle D. Abu-Halmeh, told The Washington Post that Tab Turner, the firm's principal lawyer, said he would reimburse her for her donation.

By law, a person can give no more than $2,000 to a federal candidate. It is illegal to funnel donations through another person, which could be a means of circumventing the limit.

Law enforcement sources in Little Rock familiar with the inquiry said it is being handled from Washington, not by the local U.S. attorney's office. It could not be determined whether the investigation might extend beyond the Turner firm's contributions.

The Edwards for President Committee reported raising $7.4 million through March 31, more than any of the senator's eight competitors for next year's Democratic nomination. About $4.5 million came from lawyers, most of them members of the plaintiffs' bar, and from people employed by or related to members of law firms. Twenty $2,000 donors were identified on Edwards's disclosure report as "paralegals," and nine $2,000 donors were listed as "legal assistants."

Sources said the investigation is being conducted by Craig Donsanto, director of the election crimes division in the Justice Department's Public Integrity Section. His office referred inquiries to the public relations office, which refused to discuss ongoing inquiries.

[feistydem]

9. You're going to get nailed by the mods for not having a link

I suggest adding one with an edit.

On the subject, I don't think anyone is lilly-white clean in politics anymore. I'm a Kerry supporter, but I don't enjoy seeing Edwards get dissed on DU either. I don't think it does any of us any good.

Bush is the target.

[dax]

10. Target Bush-just who are special interests?

What matters is if there is quid pro quo as in the Bush-CHeney Halliburton scenario. IE no-bid contracts go to Halliburton on a cost-plus basis so they can buy towels and put their logo on them for an additional four bucks a towel and steal the tax-payers money-C-span public affairs, listen to the hearing it will blow your mind! What matters is public policy-as in they fire all the government scientists and hire industry contractors to determine how much lead is "safe" or how much logging they can do and still save a salmon or two-Bush-Cheney are looting social security and medicare to give tax cuts and government contracts to their donors-that is the issue. Trial lawyers should be able to give money to one of their own running for office-and Kerry supporting a local contractor who had ALREADY BEEN AWARDED A CONTRACT just to get paid on a job to provide more safety for soldiers-that is honorable even if they did donate money to his campaign-if you read the story it says the company was solving a problem the big contractors could not-so Kerry was applying pressure against pressure-the Pentagon was trying to starve the little guys out so they could give every contract to Lockheed -duh-somebody ought to look into who applied that pressure from the White House to hold up the money in the first place. If you take things out of context and repeat them like evil everywhere-it only discourages people-get real until we get FINANCE REFORM denying all lobbyists acccess with money period (Edwards wants to do that) we are always going to wade in this sewer

[feistydem]

11. You are right about just who we, as Dems, should be going after on issues

of political impropriety. It is Bush/Cheney/Rummy/Ashcroft

Not the Dem candidates... and not on DU of all places.