Thread: CA-O.C. Reps campaign cash tied to embattled lobbyist

More Fraud again:

O.C. Reps campaign cash tied to embattled lobbyist

March 12th, 2009, 7:07am
posted by Dena Bunis, Washington Bureau Chief

Virtually every member of Congress- including Orange County’s six House members and California’s two senators – have shared in $40 million that an embattled Washington lobbying firm and its clients have contributed to lawmakers since 1998.

And the biggest O.C. winner in this sweepstakes is Rep. Loretta Sanchez.

The firm is the PMA Group, which is the latest Beltway lobbying firm to reportedly be under investigation by the FBI for violating campaign finance laws. The firm’s bread and butter are getting federal earmarks for its clients.

According to a tally by the Center for Responsive Politics, a campaign cash watchdog, Sanchez got $277,118 in contributions from Paul Magliocchetti- the founder of PMA , Magliocchetti family members and PMA clients.

And according to a data base posted by Taxpayers for Common Sense, Sanchez got a $3.2 million defense earmark for a PMA client last year. The earmark was for L-3 Communications, a defense contractor with a plant in Anaheim.

And the location of the place getting the earmark, says Sanchez, is why she went to bat for the money.

“Every one of the defense contractors that I support either has a plant in Orange County and I’ve gone to see the technology,’’ Sanchez said, or it’s a larger company that benefits Southern California. Her support for Boeing’s C-17, built in Long Beach, is an example, she said.

This earmark for L-3 Communication is for a new advanced 3-D locator technology that Sanchez said the Navy is real high on.

“Does PMA represent some of these clients and some of these clients gave me contributions? Yes,’’ Sanchez said. But that doesn’t mean, she said, that she doesn’t turn down earmark requests from PMA clients if they don’t pass muster. She has, she said.

Sanchez is the only O.C. member who got an earmark for a PMA client in last year’s defense bill. She’s also the only O.C. member who sits on the Armed Services Committee.

Sanchez says if it turns out that the campaign contributions she got from Magliocchetti and his family – $83,618 according to CRP, - turn out to be tainted, she would probably give that amount to non-profit organization, something lawmakers commonly do in situations like this.

According to CQPolitics,, it wasn’t just Magiliocchetti who gave this money to Sanchez and other lawmakers. It was his ex wife, current wife, son and daughter-in-law. This is a frequent tactic of people who want to skirt the federal contribution limits. Candidates could only accept $2,300 per election up to the last election. Beginning in January the limit was raised to $2,400. The only way to contribute more is to have more people give.

Here’s how much in campaign contributions O.C. other lawmakers have gotten from PMA and/or its clients since 1998:

Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Corona. $191,000 ( Calvert was a member of the Armed Services Committee until the last Congress when he moved to Appropriations); Rep. Ed Royce, R-Fullerton, $37,050; Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Huntington Beach; $31,700; Rep. Gary Miller, R-Diamond Bar, and Rep. John Campbell, who has only been in office since 2006, $10,950.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., has gotten $244,589 and Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., received $46,850 in PMA-related contributions.

http://totalbuzz.freedomblogging.com/20 ... ist/14301/

So The WHOLE Congress was bought off by these Lobbyists!!!!!!!!![/b]

The stench that is being discharged from Washington is overwhelming!