Reply #8: Add two more to your collection

[starroute]

I've also done some looking at the RGA -- largely because of their involvement with moving money from Jack Abramoff and Michael Scanlon -- and came across two items of interest.

This first one refers to the same FEC case you cite -- I think it's the original Public Citizen complaint of which the file you linked is the resolution:
http://www.tradewatch.org/documents/ACFAB5.pdf

Epiphany Productions was closely linked to the Republican Party, and in particular to Tom DeLay by way of his former chief of staff, Susan Hirschmann. The pattern of using free or under-valued restaurant meals and entertainment as unreported bribes to politicians was also present in Abramoff's use of his DC restaurants and skyboxes.

The second item is even more intriguing because it involves Wayne Berman -- now a major figure in the McCain campaign -- who in 2002-03 was involved in soliciting illegal donations from Freddie Mac to the Republican Governors Association.
http://eqs.sdrdc.com/eqsdocs/000051B2.pdf

At that time Berman was both a consultant for Freddie Mac and honorary finance chairman of the RGA. ("Honorary" only because of a small scandal he'd gotten into as finance chairman in 1999, involving the Carlyle Group and illegal state investments.)

I haven't had the time myself, but I'm really hoping somebody will put all this together and find out what Freddie Mac was lobbying so hard for in 2002 and how it relates to the subprime mortgage crisis.