Feb 19, 6:30 PM (ET)

By TAMMY WEBBER

CHICAGO (AP) - A group of black ministers who previously supported U.S. Sen. Roland Burris now plan to ask for his resignation, one of the ministers told The Associated Press on Thursday. Many of the city's influential black pastors supported Burris because of his scandal-free reputation - even though he was appointed by then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich after the governor was arrested.

But, prompted by revelations Burris attempted to raise money for Blagojevich while seeking the Senate job vacated by President Barack Obama, some of those pastors will ask Burris to resign, according to the minister, who spoke on condition of anonymity because a meeting with Burris had not yet been scheduled.

Blagojevich is accused of trying to sell the Senate appointment.

Sentiment in the black community is not unanimous, but the clergy's silence as the maelstrom of criticism swells around Burris "speaks volumes," said another minister, Ira Acree, of the Greater St. John Bible Church.

"I'm a little disturbed, but because of his track record, don't want to rush to judgment," Acree said Thursday. "But neither will I attempt to defend his actions."

Unless Illinois Democrats can find one candidate for an '09 special election who would unite the party and trounce Kirk. And, actually, I can think of one Illinois Dem who could do just that: Michelle Obama. She has a 49 percent approval rating (paired with just a 5 percent disapproval rating) and is almost certainly even more popular in her home state. More importantly, at a time when the federal government is going to be showering money on the states, she could credibly argue to Illinois voters that they'd certainly get their share.

Of course, some might say it would be inappropriate for a sitting First Lady to also be a U.S. Senator (although Hillary Clinton managed to perform both roles for a couple weeks in January 2001). So, if Michelle's unavailable, what about her mother, Marian Robinson? At 71, she's the same age as Burris, and she could pledge to merely serve out the remainder of the current term and not run in the 2010 elections. Plus, she's already in Washington--having moved into the White House with the Obamas--so she wouldn't have to relocate. I can already see her campaign slogan: "If I'm a good enough caretaker for my grandchildren, I'm a good enough caretaker for that Senate seat!"

Visclosky's ties to troubled PMA Group run deep

By HENRY C. JACKSON | Associated Press Writer
12:00 AM CST, March 2, 2009

WASHINGTON - He represents an area known for its rampant corruption, but Rep. Pete Visclosky has always had a reputation for staying above the fray.

That consensus is being challenged by revelations about the northwest Indiana Democrat's ties to a troubled defense lobbying firm.

PMA Group was once one of the biggest lobbying firms in Washington, specializing in securing defense earmarks for its clients. Now, the firm is disintegrating amid a federal investigation into allegations that its founder, Paul Magliochetti, a former top aide to Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa. steered donations to lawmakers through sham donors.

PMA Group's top beneficiaries include Murtha, chairman of the House Appropriations subcommittee that funds defense programs, and Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., who also sits on the defense appropriations subcommittee.

But few lawmakers have stronger ties to the firm than Visclosky. His former congressional chief of staff worked as a lobbyist for the firm, and he received at least $100,000 in contributions from donors tied to PMA Group between 2006 and 2008, according to Federal Election Commission reports. PMA Group was the top donor to Visclosky's 2008 re-election campaign.

From his seat on the House Appropriations Committee and its defense funding subcommittee, Visclosky has also reciprocated -- helping to secure more than $23 million in earmarks in 2008 for clients of PMA Group.

"It's pretty clear that Visclosky has deep ties to PMA Group," said Sheila Krumholz, executive president of the Center for Responsive Politics.

"It's also clear that (campaign funds) are being delivered to him on a targeted basis, based on his committee assignments. He's been in a position to help them from his perch," she said.

PMA Group spokesman Patrick Dorton declined to comment on Visclosky's ties to the firm.

The congressman said in mid-February he would return at least $18,000 from donors who were listed as having ties to PMA Group, including $16,000 in donations from men who live in the Florida community of Amelia Island and are listed in FEC filings as members of PMA's board of directors, and $2,000 from Marvin Hoffman, of Marina del Rey, Calif. who is listed as a PMA Group lobbyist but has said he has no ties to PMA Group.

Campaign spokesman David St. John said then that if more allegations of straw donors were unearthed, Visclosky would "look at giving those back" too. He declined further comment Friday.

Krumholz and others said Visclosky's ties to PMA Group reflect a culture of pay-to-play in Washington.

Reporting from Washington -- Rep. Grace F. Napolitano (D-Norwalk) has collected tens of thousands of dollars in personal income by charging double-digit interest on money she lent her campaign 11 years ago and soliciting donations from Washington lobbyists at "debt retirement" fundraisers.

Napolitano, 72, has taken advantage of a 1998 Federal Election Commission ruling that authorized her to lend $150,000 to her campaign at 18% interest, accepting her argument that the money was from a retirement fund subject to an early withdrawal penalty equivalent to that rate. She lowered the interest on the loan to 10% in mid-2006.

FEC rulings have given candidates the latitude to charge a "commercially reasonable rate" of interest for personal loans to campaign committees, said commission spokeswoman Judith Ingram.

Lawmakers aren't allowed to convert campaign funds to personal use, but laws governing the subject are arcane, Ingram said. "You have to look carefully at the regulations and see when and if that's taken place," she said.

Napolitano spokesman Christopher Honey declined to comment on the loan and said that Napolitano would not speak to a reporter about it.

Napolitano's campaign finance forms indicate that she has collected more than $158,000 in interest on the loan since 2001 and has reduced the principal by about $65,000.

The loan was first reported Friday by Bloomberg News, which said the congresswoman had paid herself $221,780 in interest since 1998. Napolitano held at least one fundraiser each in 2007 and 2008 to collect money for the loan, according to campaign records.

Both were hosted by 21st Century Group Inc. a Capitol Hill lobbying firm whose clients include several transportation interests.

Napolitano is a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and is chairwoman of the water and power subcommittee of the Natural Resources Committee.

Both fundraisers were hosted by 21st Century lobbyist Jocelyn Hong, who could not be reached for comment.

An invitation to an April 30, 2007, fundraiser promised a "Traditional, Home-Style Mexican Breakfast" and invited political action committee checks of $1,500 or personal donations of $500, payable to the "Napolitano for Congress '1998 Primary Debt Retirement.' "

The Senate Finance Committee says he underpaid by $9,975 in the last three years.

Senate aides uncovered the shortfall during weeks of vetting, and Kirk – the administration’s designated point person on trade -- has promised to pay the Internal Revenue Service in full.

The problems: Kirk deducted too much for season tickets to the Dallas Mavericks and too much for tax preparation fees, and failed to report as income speaking fees that he donated to his alma mater, Austin College.

The full political implications won’t be clear until at least next week...

The White House shrugged off Kirk's tax problems as a “few minor issues” and said the nomination remains on track.

Freeman served as a member of the international advisory board of CNOOC, a state-owned Chinese oil company. In 2005, CNOOC attempted to buy Unocal, an American oil and gas firm, for $18.5 billion in cash. The offer was eventually withdrawn after Democrats and Republicans in Congress became concerned about the sale. Freeman was brought on the board just a year earlier, perhaps in an attempt to pave the way for such a transaction. As seems so often to be the case, Freeman was unconcerned about the politics of his paymasters. Just as he continued doing business with the bin Ladens in the wake of 9/11, Freeman continued doing business with CNOOC, presumably right up to his appointment to the Obama White House. The terms of that arrangement will be one of the many interesting revelations in Freeman's financial disclosure forms, along with just how much money the Saudi royals have gifted him over the last decade, and a report from the inspector general into Freeman's ties to the Saudis, requested by Reps. Kirk and Israel, may soon follow.

The House on Thursday night turned back another call to investigate the PMA Group, a once-powerful lobbying firm whose offices were recently raided by the FBI and which has close ties to Pennsylvania Rep. John P. Murtha (D).

Twenty-one Democrats, including nine freshmen, voted to proceed with debate on the measure offered by Arizona Rep. Jeff Flake (R) calling for an investigation of the lobbying firm. Most of the Democrats represent fiscally conservative districts.

Republican Rep. Don Young of Alaska — the focus of an unrelated federal corruption probe — voted with the Democrats to table Flake's motion. He was joined by Republicans Walter Jones of North Carolina, Dana Rohrabacher of California and Tim Murphy of Pennsylvania, whose district abuts Murtha's and who has been an outspoken supporter of his recently embattled neighbor.

PMA is under investigation for allegedly making improper "straw man" donations to lawmakers. Murtha, who chairs the subcommittee that doles out defense spending, has had close ties to members of the lobbying firm.