Northwest Indiana Discussion

House ethics panel investigating Visclosky
Probe to examine ties with PMA Group

By Christine Kraly - christine.kraly@nwi.com, (219) 662-5335 |

The U.S. House ethics committee announced for the first time Friday that it has been probing since early last month whether U.S. Rep. Pete Visclosky traded campaign cash for multimillion-dollar federal earmarks.

The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct confirmed it is extending its review of the Merrillville Democrat, whose ties to a powerful lobbying firm are under federal criminal investigation.

The ethics committee will announce its "course of action" on or before March 2, the panel said.

In a statement Friday, Visclosky said he "intends to cooperate fully and believes the committee will conclude that he engaged in no wrongdoing whatsoever."

He said he "looks forward to getting this matter behind him and continuing to work hard to serve all of his constituents in the First Congressional District."

The announcement reveals what some congressional experts say can be a confusing check on some of Washington's balances.

The panel began its look into Visclosky's ties with PMA Group on Dec. 2 based on a recommendation from the Office of Congressional Ethics.

The OCE is a nonpartisan, independent body created in 2008 to review allegations of ethics abuse from the public. Prior to the group, only the House ethics committee could initiate such a probe, said Melanie Sloan, executive director for Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

If an allegation makes it to the second stage of the OCE's two-prong investigation, it means there is "probable cause to believe a violation has occurred," according to the OCE.

After the second phase, it must recommend either dismissal of the probe to the ethics committee or an extended review, as it did for Visclosky.

Sloan called the OCE recommendation likely "the least of (Visclosky's) problems."

For nearly a year, the U.S. Department of Justice has been investigating Visclosky's ties to PMA, a now-defunct lobbying firm suspected of making "straw" donations to lawmakers, concealing the true source of the money.

PMA had for years been Visclosky's top fundraising source, sending millions to the congressman, who helped award PMA clients with federal earmarks.

Visclosky's congressional office, campaign committees and some employees, including former Chief of Staff Chuck Brimmer, were subpoenaed in May.

Posted in Lake, Breaking on Saturday, January 16, 2010 12:05 am Updated: 12:33 am. | Tags: Indiana, Nwslttr, Politics

Vote out Visclosky!

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=8117

Pay-to-Play politics and political corruption are the biggest drags on the NWI economy.

Today, companies are being enticed by communities where they don't have to pay off crooked, greedy politicians.

Pay-to play politicians must be driven from office if NWI is to recover.

As U.S. Attorney Joe Van Bokkelen said "Political corruption is the leading growth industry in Northwest Indiana."

And it is crushing the Northwest Indiana econony. There are empty commercial buildings all over the area.

Businesses have to pay their taxes and also the greedy, crooked politicians. Why would they come here?

Have you noticed that they are all Democrats following the playbook first run by Richard Hatcher in 1967.

And it was no one other than Ted "The Swimmer" Kennedy that gave it to him.

The Massachusetts election tonight is a referendum on many related things: Obama, his healthcare plan, his Chicago style use of public-funds-to-buy-votes.

Is the public shouting: "We're mad as hell and we're not going to take it anymore?"

With the GOP victory in Massachusetts and the country rejecting Chicago-style pay-offs of the Democrats, I would not be surprised to see a number of registered Democrats in Lake County trying to run as Republicans (Bobby Cantrell-style).

If Curley had not thrown Cantrell out of the GOP, he would have disgraced the party.

Pay-to-Play politics sent East Chicago and Gary political hacks to prison.

It should not be tolerated in the rest of Lake County.

Payoffs to Nebraska and Louisiana helped kill the healthcare bill.

The greedy Lake County politicians who demand pay-to-play payoffs is killing economic development. But Lake County's crooked politicians don't know any other way. Bleeding the cities they run is what they do and how they get rich.

Ethics probe saps $185K in Visclosky campaign cash

Legal costs outweigh donations in final 3 months of 2009

(By Christine Kraly - christine.kraly@nwi.com, (219) 662-5335 January 30, 2010)

U.S. Rep. Pete Visclosky's legal costs have ballooned in the federal inquiry into the former top source of his campaign cash.

The Merrillville Democrat spent roughly $185,000 on attorney fees in the final three months of last year, new documents filed with the Federal Election Commission show.

It's not the first time Visclosky has doled out re-election money to comply with a Justice Department probe of the lobbying firm PMA Group; he spent $100,000 in campaign funds last summer.

But the new campaign records, filed Friday, are the first clear sign he is exercising his FEC approval to cover legal bills for current and former staff questioned in the case.

FEC records show Visclosky's campaign paid $44,600 in attorney fees on behalf of Charles Brimmer and Shari Davenport.

Brimmer, Visclosky's former chief of staff, has been subpoenaed in the PMA investigation and resigned his post last summer. Congressional records list Davenport as an assistant to Visclosky.

The Hoosier lawmaker spent another $140,300 on services from Steptoe & Johnson LLP, a firm he hired last May when it became clear his office was a focal point in an investigation into PMA.

Campaign spokesman David St. John noted the bulk of legal payments were made at the beginning of the filing quarter, in early October.

"There has not been a major legal payment made since then," he said. "That is what it is. We don't have any concern of the impact on the campaign coffers."

For nearly a year, the U.S. Department of Justice has been investigating Visclosky's ties to PMA, a now-defunct lobbying firm suspected of making "straw" donations to lawmakers, concealing the true source of the money.

The firm represented defense clients, many of them Visclosky donors who received millions in federal earmarks, projects attached to bills.

Earlier this month, the U.S. House ethics committee announced it has been investigating since December whether Visclosky traded campaign cash for earmarks.

The congressman's hefty legal costs from the last quarter, between October and the end of the year, surpassed his donations, which totaled roughly $144,000.

St. John denied the latest FEC filing could be a signal that the federal case is hurting his re-election campaign, at least monetarily.

"We don't see any red flags, (like) 'Uh-oh, we're in trouble,' " St. John said. "We feel comfortable with the state of our campaign finances."

Visclosky still had more than $804,000 cash on hand at the end of last year, and he does not yet have a Democratic opponent for the May 4 primary. Four Republicans are vying to take on Visclosky in November, including repeat challenger Mark Levya, who captured just 27 percent of the vote two years ago.

St. John also highlighted the amount of homegrown donations flowing to the congressman in the final quarter of 2009. More than half of individual contributions to Visclosky came from Northwest Indiana donors.

Visclosky "takes every election seriously," and will continue to campaign throughout the region, St. John said.

"He hopes the voters of the district will see fit to keep him in office," he said.