County subpoenaed in probe of lawmaker -- Rep. Lewis (R-CA)

[Roland99]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060602/ap_on_go_co/congressman_lobbyist

WASHINGTON - San Bernardino County, Calif., has been subpoenaed by a federal grand jury for records connected to House Appropriations Committee Chairman Jerry Lewis and a lobbying firm with strong ties to Lewis, a county official said.

The subpoena asked for all records of the county's correspondence with Lewis, R-Calif., and his staff and with the lobbying firm, Copeland, Lowery, Jacquez, Denton, & White, which employs former California Republican Congressman Bill Lowery, said San Bernardino County's chief deputy counsel, Daniel B. Haueter.

Haueter said that the county, which hired Copeland, Lowery in 2002, was complying.

The subpoena was first reported Thursday by The Sun of San Bernardino.

[Tiggeroshii]

1. Haha! Yes, this was on my front page paper down here.

Lewis is busted...

[Robbien]

2. About time they got around to Lewis

He is running unopposed in his primary Tuesday, but this should be heating up nicely just before the November election.

[987654321]

3. So do they have to turn over the shredded documents as well?

[Roland99]

4. Make Lewis tape the pieces together

[dmr]

5. The ease of staffers who move between Congress to lobbyist to Congress

is just so damn wrong. Greed has no conscience. It's not just staffers, it's former Congress-critters, former or retired military or Pentagon employees, or worse yet, lobbyist to the White House (Susan Ralston as Rove's gate-keeper) or CEO to vice-president.

I know there are rules about the conflict of interest, but either they are not being followed, or they need to be re-defined. One thing for sure, their primary interest is not what is good for the nation as a whole, but what is good for their own needs - whether it be a kick-ass golfing trip or a sweet bank account.

The ties between Lewis and Lowery include staffers who have worked for both of them. Jeff Shockey, deputy staff director of the Appropriations Committee, worked first for Lewis, then went to work for Lowery in 1999, and returned last year to Lewis' staff — getting $600,000 in severance payments from Lowery's firm. Another Lewis aide, Letitia White, became a lobbyist for Lowery in 2003.