Legal Fees Eat Into Campaign Coffers : Roll Call News

Scott J. Ferrell/CQ Roll Call File Photo

Payments from the re-election account of Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (center) to the law firm Steptoe & Johnson during the third quarter totaled $34,940.

The campaigns of current and former lawmakers paid tens of thousands of dollars last quarter to defend Members involved in ethics inquiries, hire investigative firms and settle lawsuits brought by staffers, according to a Roll Call examination of Federal Election Commission filings.

The reports, which are filed at regular intervals, detail the contributions and expenses of candidates? campaign committees. Because legal fees can be paid from money remaining in lawmakers? campaign accounts so long as the work relates to a Member?s duties in office, checks paid to law firms provide a window into which lawmakers are dealing with private lawsuits, government investigations and ethics inquiries, though the picture is often incomplete.

The report filed by the Rush Holt for Congress campaign, for example, shows that a $19,500 ?legal settlement? was paid Aug. 17.

The payment ended a lawsuit filed by a former political consultant who alleged he was told ?that we?re not hiring black people? when he brought on a group of African-American canvassers to work for the Rush Holt for Congress and Lautenberg for Senate campaigns, according to court filings.

When reached at his campaign headquarters, Rep. Rush Holt (D-N.J.) said it was a ?nuisance suit? brought by a disgruntled former campaign worker.

The campaigns of lawmakers who are being investigated by the House Ethics Committee wrote hefty checks to attorneys during July, August and September.

Since the independent Office of Congressional Ethics earlier this year investigated whether Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) had received improper loans and failed to disclose the transactions on his annual financial disclosure forms, payments from Meeks? campaign to the law firm Perkins Coie, which is handling the ethics matter, increased from $1,000 during the first quarter to almost $14,000 during the second quarter and $16,000 during the most recent filing period.

The House Ethics Committee in August made the unusual move of announcing that it would continue investigating a $40,000 loan Meeks received in 2007 without forming an investigative subcommittee. The announcement triggered the disclosure of the OCE report, which the lawmaker?s attorneys have called burdensome and costly.

?For the past several months, Rep. Meeks has faced damaging and unsubstantiated press reports that he is under ethics investigation,? Perkins Coie attorneys wrote to the Ethics Committee in June. ?He has had to incur great expense to respond to the OCE?s investigation.?

The Meeks campaign had already paid Perkins Coie more than the amount of the original loan under investigation, though the law firm is likely handling smaller legal matters for the campaign that are unrelated to the ethics inquiry.

The Meeks campaign did not respond to messages left at its headquarters.

The campaign to re-elect Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. rose precipitously in the months leading up to the Ethics Committee?s announcement in mid-October that it would resume its probe into whether the Illinois Democrat offered to raise money for former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) in exchange for the Senate seat vacated by President Barack Obama.

Payments from Jackson?s re-election account to the law firm Steptoe & Johnson during the third quarter totaled $34,940, up from $10,734 during the previous filing period and none during the first quarter of the year. The committee?s investigation of Jackson?s role in the scandal was on hold while the Justice Department built its case against Blagojevich, who was convicted in June on 17 of 20 corruption charges.

The cost of lawsuits and ethics inquiries can extend past when the investigation concludes ? and even after a lawmaker leaves Congress.

Rep. Laura Richardson (D-Calif.) was the subject of an Ethics Committee investigation last year related to a mortgage transaction that allowed her to repurchase her home after it went into foreclosure. Committee investigators also interviewed members of her staff regarding allegations that she had required her Hill employees to volunteer for her campaign.

Though the committee eventually cleared Richardson of wrongdoing in the mortgage matter and the California Democrat has said the inquiry into the staff allegations never developed into a formal investigation, legal debts continue to plague the Richardson for Congress campaign.

The campaign reported it owed $460,011 and had $116,706 in cash on hand at the end of September. More than $125,000 of the debts listed are to law firms.

Richardson?s office declined to comment on the campaign?s legal debt.

Former Rep. Eric Massa (D-N.Y.) resigned in March 2010, but his campaign account continues to pay legal fees that are likely associated with the Ethics Committee?s recent decision to reauthorize an investigative subcommittee to look into whether the ex-lawmaker sexually harassed a male staff member.

The Massa for Congress account has paid $65,730 to lawyers since the beginning of the year ? its only significant expense other than nominal phone bills, payroll processing and the salary of campaign treasurer Beverly Massa, the former lawmaker?s wife.

The campaign account of fellow New York Democrat Anthony Weiner, who resigned his House seat in June following a sexting scandal, also showed sizable legal expenditures.

During the third quarter, Friends of Weiner paid $29,832 to T&M Protection Resources, a firm that provides ?seamlessly integrated security and investigative services, including state-of-the-art security technologies, to leading corporations, organizations and private clients,? according to its website. That followed a $75,056 payment to the law firm Baker? Hostetler and nearly $25,000 paid to attorneys at Perkins Coie at the end of June.

Clarification: Nov. 2, 2011

An earlier version of the article misstated the employment status of a plaintiff in a case against the campaign of Rep. Rush Holt (D-N.J.). The plaintiff did canvassing work in support of Holt?s campaign but was paid by another candidate?s committee and an outside group.

Source: http://www.rollcall.com/issues/57_52/Legal_Fees_Eat_Into_Campaign_Coffers-209947-1.html

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Power still out for millions after 'historic storm'

SOUTH WINDSOR, Conn.?? Thousands of schoolchildren around the Northeast had one of the earliest snow days in memory Monday after a storm dumped as much as 30 inches of wet, heavy snow that snapped trees and power lines, caused widespread power failures and threatened to disrupt Halloween trick-or-treating.

Communities from Maryland to Maine that suffered through a tough winter last year followed by a series of floods and storms went into now-familiar emergency mode as shelters opened, inaccessible roads closed, regional transit was suspended or delayed, and local leaders urged caution.

The storm's lingering effects likely will outlast the snow. Temperatures are expected to begin rising Monday and the heavy, wet snow will start melting, the National Weather Service said.

The unseasonably early nor'easter had utility companies struggling to restore electricity to more than 3 million homes and businesses. By early Monday, the number of customers without power had dipped to around 2 million and continued falling. But officials in some states warned it could be days or even a week before residents have power again, even though crews have been brought in from as far away as Michigan and Canada.

"We are in full restoration mode," said Marcy Reed, president of National Grid Massachusetts.

Trees, branches and power lines still littered roads and rail lines throughout the region, leading to a tough Monday morning commute for many. The ice was responsible for several accidents in the Philadelphia area on Monday morning, according to Philly.com.

Story: 80-year-old falls into sinkhole in his front lawn

Some local officials canceled or postponed Halloween activities, fearful that young trick-or-treaters could wander into areas with downed power lines or trees ready to topple over.

"This is an historic storm," said Conn. Gov. Dannel P. Malloy told The Hartford Courant. "This is the largest number of power outages we have ever experienced."

More than 800,000 lost power in Connecticut and by early Monday, 750,000 people still had no power.

A weekend that should have brought activity no more strenuous than raking colorful autumn leaves left Northeasterners weather-weary.

Video: Northeast recovering from freak snowstorm (on this page)

"You had this storm, you had Hurricane Irene, you had the flooding last spring and you had the nasty storms last winter," Tom Jacobsen said Sunday while getting coffee at a convenience store in Hamilton Township, N.J. "I'm starting to think we really ticked off Mother Nature somehow because we've been getting spanked by her for about a year now."

The storm smashed record snowfall totals for October and worsened as it moved north. Communities in western Massachusetts were among the hardest hit. Snowfall totals topped 27 inches in Plainfield, and nearby Windsor got 26 inches. The snowstorm was blamed for at least 12 deaths, and states of emergency were declared in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey and parts of New York.

"Look at this, look at all the damage," said Jennifer Burckson, 49, after she came outside Sunday morning in South Windsor to find a massive tree branch had smashed her car's back windshield. Trees in the neighborhood snapped in half, with others weighed down so much that the leaves brushed the snow.

Compounding the storm's impact were still-leafy trees, which gave the snow something to hang onto and that put tremendous weight on branches, said National Weather Service spokesman Chris Vaccaro. That led to limbs breaking off and contributed to the widespread power failures.

"This is not going to be a quick fix," said Peter Judge, a Massachusetts emergency management official.

This power failure will be worse than the one caused by Hurricane Irene in August, said Peter Bloom, 70, of South Windsor, because he relies on electricity to heat his home.

Video: Record snowstorm blankets Northeast (on this page)

"I'm going to put another blanket on. What else can I do?" he said Sunday as he gassed up a snow blower to clear his driveway. "At least I'll save a few bucks on my electric bill."

Trick-or-treating with boots on
The severity of the storm caught many by surprise, and it disrupted Halloween plans, too.

Sharon Martovich of Southbury, Conn., who was grocery shopping Sunday morning in nearby Newtown at one of the few businesses open for miles, said she's hoping the power will come back on in time for her husband's Halloween tradition of playing "Young Frankenstein" on a giant screen in front of their house.

"We would be really sad and it would disappoint a lot of people if we can't play 'Young Frankenstein,'" she said. But no matter what, they will make sure the eight or so children who live in the neighborhood don't miss out on trick-or-treating.

"Either way we will get the giant flashlights and we will go," she said.

She was already making the best of the power failure. After the lights went out around 4 p.m. Saturday, she invited neighbors over for an impromptu Halloween party with wine and quesadillas in front of her propane fireplace.

Around Newtown, snow-laden branches were snapping off trees every few minutes, and roads that were plowed became impassible because the trees were falling so fast.

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Along the coast and in such cities as Boston, relatively warm water helped keep snowfall totals much lower. Washington received a trace of snow, tying a 1925 record for the date. New York City's Central Park set a record for both the date and for October with 1.3 inches.

But in New Hampshire's capital of Concord, more than 22 inches fell, weeks ahead of the usual first measurable snowfall. West Milford, N.J., about 45 miles northwest of New York City, had 19 inches by early Sunday.

In Maine, about 35,800 remained without power on Sunday night, according to the Portland Press Herald.

New Jersey's largest electric and gas utility, PSE&G, warned customers to prepare for "potentially lengthy outages" and advised power might not be fully restored until Wednesday. About 400,000 people in New Jersey were still in the dark early Monday, down from more than 612,000.

Massachusetts had half a million without power, Pennsylvania more than 200,000 and New York around 270,000.

Rail service was getting back up to speed across the region, though delays were expected. Amtrak had suspended service on several routes, and one train from Chicago to Boston got stuck overnight in Palmer, Mass. The 48 passengers had food and heat, a spokeswoman said, and were taken by bus Sunday to their destinations.

Deaths blamed on the storm included an 84-year-old Pennsylvania man killed by a tree that fell on his home, a person who died in a traffic accident in Colchester, Conn., and a 20-year-old man who was electrocuted in Springfield, Mass.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45100861/ns/weather/

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Egypt: Israel delaying expanding Gaza offensive (AP)

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip ? An Egyptian official said Tuesday that Israel has agreed to briefly delay expanding its military operations in the Gaza Strip to give Egypt time to try to persuade Palestinian militant factions to halt rocket fire on southern Israel.

Israeli aircraft have targeted rocket squads in Gaza in recent days, but the Egyptian official says Israel has also planned a wider operation. The official says Egypt asked for 24 hours to try to bring all factions into an informal cease-fire and Israel agreed to give Cairo until around midnight Tuesday.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss Egyptian mediation.

The Israeli defense ministry had no immediate comment.

The military said there have been no Israeli airstrikes since around midnight Monday. Two rockets were fired from Gaza during that time.

On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned from the podium of the Israeli parliament that Israel would operate "vigorously and resolutely" against those who would threaten its security.

"A security philosophy cannot rely on defense alone," Netanyahu said. "It must also include offensive capabilities, the very foundation of deterrence."

The recent flare in violence has been the worst in the area in months, killing at least 10 militants and an Israeli civilian.

The attacks have disrupted life in southern Israel, forcing schools to close. About 1 million Israelis live within range of rockets from Gaza.

The Islamic Jihad faction had led the rocket attacks that began last week, but on Sunday agreed to stop the violence if Israel also did. Rocket fire that drew retaliatory Israeli airstrikes persisted afterward, but it was claimed by a different militant group, the leftist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

Gaza's ruling Hamas group, which has killed hundreds of Israelis in past violence, has not directly been involved in the attacks. But Israel holds Hamas responsible for all violence from the territory.

Hamas, meanwhile, said Tuesday that the Israeli military had arrested one of its leaders in the West Bank, Hassan Youssef, overnight in his Ramallah home. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri called the move "a dangerous Israeli escalation against Hamas and against one of the symbols of the elected Palestinian legitimacy."

Youssef was released from an Israeli prison in August after serving six years.

The Israeli military had no immediate comment.

Hamas has controlled Gaza since taking it over in June 2007 during a civil war with its rival Fatah. The West Bank is governed by the Palestinian Authority, run by President Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah, who unlike Hamas favors a negotiated settlement with Israel.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111101/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_israel_palestinians

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Wisconsin falls again in final seconds, 33-29 (AP)

COLUMBUS, Ohio ? The first loss for Wisconsin was painful. The second was almost unbearable.

Braxton Miller lobbed a 40-yard touchdown pass to an open Devin Smith with 20 seconds left to give Ohio State a dramatic 33-29 victory over the 12th-ranked Badgers on Saturday night.

Dramatic losses are nothing new for the Badgers.

"It's pretty tough, especially two in a row," quarterback Russell Wilson said. "The Hail Mary from the week before, and then just throwing it up and finding a guy. That's kind of tough."

It was almost exactly seven days earlier that the Badgers were beaten 37-31 at Michigan State on a miracle pass on the final play of the game. The latest heartbreak, just like that one, wasn't confirmed until it passed a video review.

"The replay booth has definitely not been our friend the last two weeks," a glum Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema said.

The Badgers (6-2, 2-2 Big Ten) drove to the Ohio State 45 ? and got an extra play after time elapsed due to a defensive facemask call ? but linebacker Andrew Sweat hit Wilson as he was throwing to end the game. The ball fell far short of the target, touching off a wild celebration.

It was an incredible finish, with four touchdowns scored in the final 4:39. But the Buckeyes were the last standing after a series of knockout punches by both sides.

Much like a week before when the Badgers came back from a two-touchdown deficit to pull even, Wilson threw touchdown passes of 17 and 49 yards to Jared Abbrederis with 3:48 and 1:18 left to give Wisconsin a 29-26 lead.

But it wouldn't last.

Miller had given Ohio State (5-3, 2-2) a 26-14 lead with 4:39 remaining with his second touchdown run, from 44 yards out.

The Badgers answered with a quick score in just 44 seconds, with Wilson hitting Abbrederis on a 17-yard score to cut it to 26-21.

Wisconsin kicked deep and then held the Buckeyes on three runs, forcing a punt.

It took just four plays to cover the 68 yards, with Wilson finding Abbrederis all alone down the right sideline for a touchdown with 1:18 left. A 2-point conversion pass from Wilson to Ball made it 29-26.

"Unfortunately, we scored too fast," said Bielema.

After Jordan Hall returned the ensuing kickoff 42 yards, the Buckeyes were in business again.

They picked up 12 yards on three plays before Miller took the snap on first down at the Wisconsin 40 with 30 seconds left. He floated right to avoid a rush, barely sidestepped a potential tackle and suddenly noticed Smith wide open in the end zone. Miller stopped and looped the ball to Smith who caught it just before two defenders closed on him.

A crowd of 105,511 went wild.

A video review confirmed that Miller had not crossed the line of scrimmage before arching the long pass that decided the game ? but it wasn't over.

The Buckeyes kicked off out of bounds. That gave Wisconsin the ball at its own 40 with 18 seconds left.

Wilson threw three incompletions ? twice off the hands of receivers who had chances to make huge plays.

As a mob of fans waited to rush the field, it was announced there was a flag on the final play of regulation. It was for a defensive facemask call against safety Christian Bryant.

That gave the Badgers the ball at the Ohio State 45 and one final play.

But the pocket closed on Wilson and Sweat hit him from behind just as he was releasing the pass, the ball fluttering to the ground while the field filled with running, jumping fans celebrating Ohio State's 90th homecoming.

The Badgers are hoping for brighter days.

"Obviously, it's another heartbreaking loss," Bielema said.

Wilson looked stunned as he assessed another one that slipped away.

"We kept believing that our defense was going to stop them," said Wilson, who completed 20 of 32 passes for 253 yards and three scores. "We just fell short. They made a nice play at the end."

___

Follow Rusty Miller on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/rustymillerap.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/sports/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111030/ap_on_sp_co_ga_su/fbc_t25_wisconsin

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Senate defeats another GOP attempt to kill transportation program that funds bike paths (Star Tribune)

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Laser Carved Pumpkin Produces Impressive Results and Terrible Smells [Lasers]

In a stroke of pure genius, Jack Chalkley decided the intricate pattern he'd chosen for his pumpkin was too complicated for his limited carving skills. So he converted his design into vector art in Illustrator, fed the results into his laser cutting machine, and plunked his pumpkin down on the cutting bed. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/GSiF3CpYIp4/laser-carved-pumpkin-produces-impressive-results-and-terrible-smells

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Rescue efforts suspended at Kansas grain elevator

A Kansas State Trooper walks from his vehicle at the Bartlett Grain Co. elevator in Atchison, Kan., Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011. The explosion injured at least two people. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)

A Kansas State Trooper walks from his vehicle at the Bartlett Grain Co. elevator in Atchison, Kan., Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011. The explosion injured at least two people. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)

A Kansas State Trooper stands his post near the Bartlett Grain Co. elevator in Atchison, Kan., Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011. An explosion at the grain elevator injured at least two people. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)

Atchison city manager Trey Cocking talks with reporters near the Bartlett Grain Co. elevator in Atchison, Kan., Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011. An explosion at the grain elevator injured at least two people. (AP Photo/John Hanna)

Officials meet near the Bartlett Grain Co. elevator in Atchison, Kan., Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011. An explosion at the grain elevator injured at least two people. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)

Smoke leaks from the top of the Bartlett Grain Co. elevator in Atchison, Kan., Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011. An explosion at the grain elevator injured at least two people. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)

ATCHISON, Kan. (AP) ? Crews temporarily suspended their search Sunday for three people missing since an explosion at a Kansas grain elevator that killed three workers and left two critically injured with severe burns.

Atchison City Manager Trey Cocking said officials with Bartlett Grain Co. decided it was unsafe for anyone to be inside the facility until later Sunday, when some heavy equipment was expected to arrive to assist them.

The explosion blew off a chunk of a grain distribution building that sits directly above the elevator, and Cocking said officials were fearful the building could fall on top of rescue crews amid the search. The efforts were already called off overnight because of darkness.

"It's a fairly dangerous situation. We don't feel comfortable putting fire crews in," Cocking said.

Although crews were considering the effort a recovery mission, Cocking said they hadn't given up hope that the one elevator company worker and two state grain inspectors might be found alive.

Family members of one of the missing, Travis Keil, 34, of Topeka, headed Sunday to Atchison to await news about his whereabouts. Gary and Ramona Keil, who made the drive from Salina with Travis Keil's three children, ages 8, 12 and 15, said their son was a war veteran who had been working as a site inspector for 16 years.

"We have all our prayers working for him," Gary Keil said.

Two other victims who were admitted to the burn unit of University of Kansas Hospital in Kansas City, Kan., were listed in critical condition there Sunday morning, hospital spokesman Dennis McCulloch said.

Cocking said four other people associated with the explosion escaped without injuries. No names were being released pending notification of families.

With smoke still billowing from the facility Sunday, train traffic past the elevator was being rerouted. A few emergency crews, including Union Pacific Railroad, drove to the scene as daylight broke.

The explosion could be seen and felt across Atchison, shaking homes and businesses up to four miles away. The cause was not immediately known, though grain elevator accidents can occur after grain dust becomes suspended in the air and turns explosive in the right conditions.

Bartlett Grain President Bill Fellows said in a statement that workers were loading a train with corn when the explosion occurred about 7 p.m. Saturday. The company planned to issue an updated statement Sunday.

Explosions are a leading hazard at grain elevators. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, there have been more than 600 explosions over the last four decades, killing more than 250 and injuring more than 1,000. Grain dust is the main source of elevator blasts, as the dust can become airborne and explosive ? needing only a slight ignition source, such as electrical sparks, to cause a blast.

OSHA says suffocations are the leading killer at grain bins when workers become trapped in cascading grain. A study by Purdue University and cited by OSHA found 26 suffocation deaths at grain bins in 2010, the highest number on record at the time.

An explosion at a grain elevator in Bartley, Neb., in April 2010, caused no injuries but sent workers scrambling out of the way, while another in Gothenburg, Neb., in December 2010, scattered debris over nearby railroad tracks and a highway, also without injuries, authorities reported at the time.

Elsewhere, explosions or fires were reported at two grain elevators in Illinois in 2010 while a fire burning at a grain elevator in the Toledo, Ohio, area in September 2010 forced people to evacuate from a nearby mobile home park and businesses as a precaution. There also have been explosions or fires at elevators in South Dakota and Louisiana that year, none of them fatal.

Authorities said two workers were killed in June 2010 when they were buried under a load of wheat at an elevator in the central Kansas town of Russell though no explosion occurred there.

Paul Moccia, 57, lives in Atchison about a half mile from the grain elevator. He said the explosion shook his house and that lights flickered across his neighborhood for about 30 seconds.

"It was extremely loud. It was kind of like to me a double whomp, ? a bomp bomp. It reverberated, and kind of echoed down through the valley. ... kind of like a shock wave," he said. "Everybody came outside. Neighbors were trying to figure out what was going on. It was quite a thump."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/apdefault/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2011-10-30-Grain%20Elevator%20Explosion/id-e16372f56db24acf9ccf57742101dc83

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