Extortion: How Politicians Extract Your Money, Buy Votes, and Line Their Own Pockets

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by Schweizer, Peter


  63. All from Koehler, “Big, Bold, and Bizarre,” p. 126.

  64. Nathan Vardi, “The Bribery Racket,” Forbes, June 7, 2010.

  65. See Thomas O. Gorman and William P. McGrath Jr., “The New Era of FCPA Enforcement: Moving Toward a New Era of Compliance,” Securities Regulation Law Journal (Winter 2012): 342.

  66. “Former Chief of DOJ Fraud Unit Discusses Healthcare and FCPA Enforcement,” Metropolitan Corporate Counsel, October 2012.

  67. Mike Koehler, “Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Enforcement as Seen Through Wal-Mart’s Potential Exposure,” Bloomberg BNA White Collar Crime Report, September 21, 2012, p. 7.

  68. Black, “The SEC and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act,” p. 1111.

  69. Opensecrets.org, “Oil & Gas: Long-Term Contribution Trends,” http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/totals.php?cycle=2012&ind=E01.

  70. Michael Gilbert and Joshua W. B. Richards, “The SEC’s Investigation of the FCPA Violations and Sovereign Wealth Funds,” The Hedge Fund Law Report (February 3, 2011); Association of Corporate Counsel, “Industry-wide Sweep Launched into Possible Violation of FCPA by U.S. Bank and Private Equity Firms,” Lexology (January 26, 2011).

  71. “Financiers Switch to GOP,” Wall Street Journal, April 26, 2011.

  72. Opensecrets.org, “Hedge Funds: Long-Term Contribution Trends,” http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/totals.php?cycle=2012&ind=F2700.

  73. Ashley Southall, “Obama Vows to Push Immigration Changes,” New York Times, October 25, 2010.

  74. Stephen Gandel, “Not Just Wal-Mart: Dozens of U.S. Companies Face Bribery Suspicions,” CNNMoney, April 26, 2012, http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2012/04/26/walmart-bribery-investigations.

  75. Emily Jane Fox, “Adelson’s Company ‘Likely” Violated Bribery Law,” CNNMoney, March 3, 2013, http://money.cnn.com/2013/03/03/news/companies/sands-casino-adelson-corruption/index.html.

  76. Russ Choma, “Bentonville’s Influence in Washington,” Opensecrets.org, May 2, 2012, http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2012/05/bentonvilles-influence-in-washingto.html.

  77. Walmart, “Jim C. Walton,” http://corporate.walmart.com/our-story/leadership/board-of-directors/jim-walton.

  78. Gandel, “Not Just Wal-Mart.”

  79. Clare O’Connor, “40 Behind-the-Scenes Billionaires Funding the 2012 Election,” Forbes, March 22, 2012.

  80. Sara Sun Beale, “Rethinking the Identity and Role of United States Attorneys,” Ohio State Journal of Criminal Law 6 (2009): 371–372.

  81. Silverglate, Three Felonies a Day, p. 267.

  82. Ben Protess, “DealBook: Once More Through the Revolving Door for Justice’s Breuer,” New York Times, March 28, 2013 .

  83. Covington & Burling LLP, “Lanny A. Breuer,” http://www.cov.com/lbreuer.

  84. “Lanny Breuer Back to Covington,” Corporate Crime Reporter, March 28, 2013; Protess, “Once More Through the Revolving Door for Justice’s Breuer”; and Koehler, “Lanny Breuer and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Enforcement.”

  85. Turk, “A Political Economy Approach to Reforming the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act,” p. 350.

  86. Covington & Burling LLP, “International: Anti-Corruption,” http://www.cov.com/practice/international/anti_corruption.

  87. Paul Hastings, “Paul Hastings Adds Assistant Chief of Department of Justice’s Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Unit in Washington, D.C.,” March 11, 2013, http://www.paulhastings.com/news/details/?id=a7a72f26-8aa5-6986-8b86-ff00008cffc3.

  88. “Friday Roundup,” FCPA Professor Blog, March 15, 2013, and “Former FCPA Prosecutor Heads to Paul Hastings,” The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times, March 11, 2013.

  9. It’s a Family Affair

  1. Mark Preston, “Reid to Enlist K Street,” Roll Call, January 24, 2005.

  2. Elsa Walsh, “Minority Retort: How a Pro-Gun, Anti-Abortion Nevadan Leads the Senate’s Democrats,” The New Yorker, August 8, 2005.

  3. This account of Reid’s early years is drawn from Harry Reid, The Good Fight: Hard Lessons from Searchlight to Washington (New York: Berkley Publishing Group, 2008).

  4. Walsh, “Minority Retort.”

  5. Reid, The Good Fight, 271–72.

  6. Ibid., pp. 247.

  7. Ibid., pp. 257–63.

  8. Ibid., pp. 260–62.

  9. Walsh, “Minority Retort.”

  10. David McGrath Schwartz, “Harry Reid Talks Softly, but Carries a Big Stick,” Las Vegas Sun, August 31, 2011.

  11. Harry Reid, “If We Can Beat Mob, We Can Fight DeLay-Style Politics,” Houston Chronicle, January 13, 2006.

  12. Karoun Demirjian, “Top 10 Nevada Land Swaps Stalled in Congress,” Las Vegas Sun, February 28, 2013.

  13. Harry Reid, “The Changing Role of Government: A Federal Perspective,” GW Policy Perspectives, May 13, 2013.

  14. Chuck Neubauer and Richard T. Cooper, “Desert Connections ,” Los Angeles Times, August 20, 2006.

  15. Chuck Neubauer and Richard T. Cooper, “The Senator’s Sons; in Nevada, the Name to Know Is Reid,” Los Angeles Times, June 23, 2003.

  16. Ibid.

  17. Josh Harkinson, “Gold Member,” Mother Jones (March–April 2009).

  18. MapLight, “U.S. Congress—Find Contributions: Legislator, Harry Reid; Contributor, Barrick; Election Cycle, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012” (accessed April 29, 2013).

  19. Schwartz, “Harry Reid Talks Softly, but Carries a Big Stick .”

  20. Ibid.

  21. Alan Snel, “Arena Doomed Without NBA, Developer Says ,” Las Vegas Review-Journal, February 5, 2013; and Jon Ralston, “Lawyers Say Harry Reid’s Son Used Majority Leader as Leverage to Settle Henderson Case,” Ralstonflash.com, March 16, 2013. Ralston is a longtime newspaper reporter in Las Vegas.

  22. Cited in Ira Stoll, “Brownstein, Hyatt’s Stimulus Boast,” FutureOfCapitalism.com, June 15, 2010, http://www.futureofcapitalism.com/2010/06/brownstein-hyatts-stimulus-boast.

  23. Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, “Josh M. Reid,” http://web.archive.org/web/20110213081843/http://www.bhfs.com/People/jreid.

  24. Jane Ann Morrison, “No Matter What He Does, Josh Reid Can’t Shake Father’s Shadow,” Las Vegas Review Journal, December 1, 2011.

  25. Michael Lyle, “Josh Reid Starts as Henderson’s New City Attorney,” Las Vegas Review Journal, January 3, 2012.

  26. FindTheData, “Compare Individual Political Contributions,” http://fec-individuals.findthedata.org/search/cmte_id/C00496893.

  27. Opensecrets.org, “De-Ling Zhou,” http://www.opensecrets.org/usearch/?q=De-Ling+Zhou&searchButt_clean.x=0&searchButt_clean.y=0&cx=010677907462955562473%3Anlldkv0jvam&cof=FORID%3A11.

  28. Marcus Stern, “U.S. Senator Reid, Son Combine for China Firm’s Desert Plant,” Reuters, August 31, 2012.

  29. Ibid.

  30. Federal Election Commission, “AO 2003–10 Solicitation of Nonfederal Funds by a Relative of a Federal Candidate” (FEC record), August 2003, p. 6.

  31. Federal Election Commission (FEC), “Candidate and Committee Viewer: Friends of Harry Reid,” http://www.fec.gov/fecviewer/CandidateCommitteeDe tail.do.

  32. Federal Election Commission (FEC), “Candidate and Committee Viewer: Reid Majority Fund,” http://www.fec.gov/fecviewer/CandidateCommitteeDetail.do.

  33. Federal Election Commission (FEC), “Candidate and Committee Viewer: Reid Victory Fund,” http://www.fec.gov/fecviewer/CandidateCommitteeDetail.do.

  34. Federal Election Commission (FEC), “Candidate and Committee Viewer: Searchlight Leadership Fund,” http://www.fec.gov/fecviewer/CandidateCommit teeDetail.do.

  35. Ibid.

  36. Jon Ralston, “Rory Reid’s Gubernatorial Campaign Circumvented Contribution Limits, Created 91 Shell PACs to Infuse $750,000 into Campaign,” Las Vegas Sun, March 4, 2011.

  37. Jon Ralston, “Rory Reid’s House of Cards Crumbles,” Las Vegas Sun, March 6, 2011.

  38. Jon Ralston, “Who Funded Rory Reid’s PAC—California Bigwig, Vegas Cab Magnate, Unions, Gamers,” Las Vegas Sun, March 4, 20
11.

  39. FEC, “New Statement of Organization (Form 1) filers,” http://www.fec.gov/press/press2011/new_form1dt.shtml.

  40. Reid Searchlight Fund, “Statement of Organization,” http://images.nictusa.com/pdf/918/13031051918/13031051918.pdf#navpanes=0.

  41. Searchlight Lake Tahoe Victory Fund, “Statement of Organization,” http://images.nictusa.com/pdf/708/13031060708/13031060708.pdf#navpanes=0.

  42. See Chris Anderson’s LinkedIn profile at: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/chris-anderson/1a/bb5/42a.

  43. Roseann Moring, “Blunt Headed to the Senate,” Springfield News-Leader, November 3, 2010.

  44. Shailagh Murray and Thomas B. Edsall, “Pursuing a Fast Track to Party Leadership,” Washington Post, October 1, 2005.

  45. Thomas B. Edsall, “House Majority Whip Exerts Influence by Way of K Street,” Washington Post, May 17, 2005.

  46. “Four Million Reasons Why Roy Blunt Isn’t the Consummate Washington Insider,” FiredUpMissouri.com, http://www.firedupmissouri.com/content/four-million-reasons-why-roy-blunt-shouldnt-isnt-consummate-washington-insider.

  47. John B. Judis, “Tom DeLay’s Ties to Roy Blunt,” The New Republic, October 27, 2005. The author has confirmed these cash movements on FEC records and financial disclosures.

  48. Paul Sloca, “Youngest Blunt Makes Mark as Capitol Lobbyist,” Southeast Missourian, March 10, 2003, http://m.semissourian.com/story/103696.html.

  49. Sam Dealey, “Rep. Blunt’s Son Aided by Donors from Out-of-State,” The Hill, July 9, 2003.

  50. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), “Beyond DeLay: The Twenty Most Corrupt Members of Congress (and Five to Watch),” http://www.citizensforethics.org/page/-/PDFs/Reports/CREW_Beyond_Delay_Report_20060920.pdf?nocdn=1.

  51. Bill Bell Jr., “Parties in Missouri Use Loophole to Fill Pockets of Candidates,” St. Louis Post Dispatch, August 21, 2000.

  52. Associated Press, “Follow the Money: DeLay’s Campaign Finances,” Fox News, October 5, 2005, http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,171368,00.html.

  53. Sloca, “Youngest Blunt Makes Mark as Capitol Lobbyist.”

  54. Robert Kaiser, So Damn Much Money: The Triumph of Lobbying and the Corrosion of American Government (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2009).

  55. Terry Ganey, “Brother’s Lobbying Won’t Sway Decisions, Blunt Says,” St. Louis Post Dispatch, November 24, 2004.

  56. Jim Snyder, “Former Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt Joins Cassidy,” The Hill, February 3, 2009.

  57. Opensecrets.org, “Blunt, Abigail P.,” http://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/lobbyist.php?id=Y0000031637L&year=2003.

  58. David D. Kirkpatrick, “Post Comes with Renewed Scrutiny of Record,” New York Times, September 30, 2005; “Family Traditions,” St. Louis Post Dispatch, April 27, 2005.

  59. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), “CREW Reveals Newest Majority Leader—Rep. Blunt—One of the Most Unethical Members of Congress,” September 29, 2005, http://www.citizensforethics.org/index.php/press/entry/crew-reveals-new-majority-leader-one-of-the-most-unethical-representatives.

  60. John Gizzi, “Politics 2003: Week of January 27,” Human Events, January 27, 2003, http://www.humanevents.com/2003/01/27/politics-2003brweek-of-january-27.

  61. Associated Press, “Blunt Says Lobbyist Brother Won’t Try to Influence Executive Branch,” Southeast Missourian, November 25, 2004, http://www.semissourian.com/story/151016.html.

  62. Christopher Tritto, “Blunt Force: Capitol Connections Fuel GOP Dynasty,” St. Louis Business Journal, January 30, 2006.

  63. Ibid.

  64. Kit Wagar, “Missouri OKs Law That Thwarts Discount Brokers,” Kansas City Star, July 24, 2005.

  65. David Martin, “Laundry Rooms,” Kansas City Pitch, February 16, 2006, http://www.pitch.com/kansascity/laundry-rooms/Content?oid=2181024.

  66. Ibid.

  67. Associated Press, “Blunt’s Brother Involved in Ethanol Business Plan,” KWMU, June 5, 2006; David A. Lieb, “Mo. Treasurer: Conflicts Bar Aid for Ethanol Plant,” USA Today, September 25, 2008; and National Institute on Money in State Politics, “Blunt, Andrew B.,” http://www.followthemoney.org/database/lobbyist.phtml?l=27667.

  68. David A. Lieb (Associated Press), “Documents Reveal Missouri License Records Fee Increase Set to Pay for Computer System,” Southeast Missourian, May 22, 2008, http://www.semissourian.com/story/1406919.html.

  69. Associated Press, “Lawmakers Balk at Driver’s License Records Fee Increase,” Southeast Missourian, May 7, 2008, http://www.semissourian.com/story/1400583.html.

  70. Missouri Ethics Commission, “Lobbyist Search: Reichard; Year, 2007,” http://www.moethics.mo.gov/EthicsWeb/Lobbying/Lob_SearchLob.aspx; Tritto, “Blunt Force.”

  71. National Institute on Money in State Politics, “Blunt, Andrew B.”

  72. Missouri Governor’s Office, “Blunt Announces New Resource to Help Missourians Find the Lowest Price for Their Prescription Medicine,” January 10, 2007, http://web.archive.org/web/20070208102909/http://www.gov.mo.gov/press/DSSPricePosting011007.htm.

  73. Keegan Hamilton, “Libertarians Shun Chief Wana Dubie,” Riverfront Times, January 30, 2008.

  74. Glen Justice, “For Lobbyist, a Seat of Power Came with a Plate,” New York Times, July 6, 2005.

  75. James Ridgeway, “Sticky Fingers,” Village Voice, January 18, 2006.

  76. John H. Fund, “Blunt Instruments,” American Spectator, March 2006.

  77. Mary Curtius and Richard Simon, “Not the Majority Leader They Expected,” Los Angeles Times, February 3, 2006.

  78. Bill Lambrecht, “Carnahan Barely Bests Blunt in Fundraising for Missouri Senate Race,” St. Louis Post Dispatch, April 26, 2010.

  79. Cassidy & Associates, “Andy Blunt,” http://www.cassidy.com/team/77.

  80. Opensecrets.org, “Expenditures: Representative Roy Blunt, 2009–2010,” http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/expend.php?cycle=2010&cid=N00005195& type=I.

  81. National Institute on Money in State Politics, “Blunt, Andrew B.”

  82. Jake Wagman, “Former Governor Blunt to Head Auto Lobbying Group,” Political Fix, February 2, 2011; “Standing Committees of the 112th Senate” (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office), p. 343.

  83. Dan Margolies, “Hiring of Amy Blunt Adds to Law Firm’s Clout,” Kansas City Star, August 15, 2006.

  84. Ibid.

  85. Carl Hulse and Philip Shenon, “DeLay Denounces Report on Payments to His Family,” New York Times, April 7, 2005.

  10. Conclusion: Protection for the Rest of Us

  1. Jonathan Martin and Carrie Budoff Brown, “Feds: Blagojevich ‘Has Taken Us to a Truly New Low,’” Politico, December 9, 2008.

  2. Bob Secter and Jeff Coen, “Jesse Jackson Jr. Knew of $1 Million Offer for Senate Seat, Prosecutors Say,” Chicago Tribune, July 7, 2010.

  3. Thomas G. Donlan, “Business as Usual,” Barron’s, December 15, 2008.

  4. Sarah Ostman, “Blagojevich Speaks on Possible Gag Order, Patti’s Hair,” Chicago Sun-Times, June 21, 2010.

  5. John Kass, “Blagojevich Fishes for Excuse, Hooks a Keeper,” Chicago Tribune, March 18, 2002.

  6. J. Gregory Sidak, “Review Essay: The Petty Larceny of the Police Power,” California Law Review 86 (1998): 663.

  7. Donlan, “Business as Usual.”

  8. Sheryl Gay Stolberg, “Lobbying Bill Passes Narrowly in the House,” New York Times, May 4, 2006.

  9. Quoted in Currinder, Money in the House, p. 286.

  10. Wendy Kaminer, “To Democrats, Free Speech Makes a Racket,” Wall Street Journal, May 9, 2000.

  11. Quoted in Jessica A. Levinson, “Timing Is Everything: A New Model for Countering Corruption Without Silencing Speech in Elections,” St. Louis University Law Journal 55 (2011): 853.

  12. Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1, 30.

  13. The Rules of the Florida House of Representatives, August 9, 2011.

  14. Kate Ackley, “Maxing Out? A Five-Day-a-Week Congress May Mean a F
ull Calendar of Fundraisers,” Roll Call, January 8, 2007.

  15. Quoted in Currinder, Money in the House, p. 286.

  16. Jessica A. Levinson, “Timing Is Everything: A New Model for Countering Corruption Without Silencing Speech in Elections,” St. Louis University Law Journal 55 (2011): 853–85, 874, http://slu.edu/Documents/law/Law%20Journal/Archives/Levinson_Article.pdf.

  17. Ibid., p. 880.

  18. Quoted in Marian Currinder, Money in the House, p. 296.

  19. Quoted in ibid., p. 252.

  20. Brian Baird, “We Need to Read the Bills,” Washington Post, November 26, 2004.

  21. Ian Talley, “Need for Speed (Read) to Pass Climate Bill,” Wall Street Journal, May 20, 2009.

  22. Pete Kasperowicz, “Rand Paul Puts Forward Measure That Would Force the Senate to Read Bills,” The Hill, July 2, 2012.

  Appendix 1

  1. Data was obtained from NRCC office in March of 2013. List does not include information for the following members: Dana Rohrbach, Don Young, Jim Sensenbrenner, Jeff Fortenberry, Jim Bridenstine, Justin Amash, Mark Sanford, Marlin Stutzman, Paul Broun, Raul Labrador, Rodney Alexander, Shelley Capito, Steve Stockman, Steven Palazzo, Tim Huelskamp, Tom Graves, and Walter Jones.

  2. Data was obtained from DCCC office in 2013.

  Appendix 2

  1. Source: http://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/industry.php?txt=Q03&cycle=2012&view=R

  Index

  Abramoff, Jack, [>]–[>]

  Access to Capital for Job Creators Act (H.R. 2940), [>]–[>]

  accountability, and style, [>]–[>]

  Ackerman, Gary, [>]

  ACS Heritage, [>]

  Adelson, Sheldon, [>]

  AeroVironment, Inc., [>]

  Affordable Health Care Act, [>]–[>]

  Agosto, Tony, [>]–[>]

  airline industry, and Congressional privilege, [>]–[>]

  Alexander, Lamar, [>], [>

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