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The National Legal and Policy Center (NLPC) is a right-wing
501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...
non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
group that monitors and reports on the
ethics Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concerns m ...
of public officials, supporters of liberal causes, and
labor unions A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...
in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. The Center files complaints with government agencies, legally challenges what they view as abuse and corruption, and publishes reports. The NLPC is described as
conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
in nature. The NLPC's current chairman is Peter Flaherty. The NLPC was founded in 1991 following the release of the Senate Ethics Committee report into the
Keating Five File:AlanCranston.jpg, Alan Cranston (D-CA) File:Dennis DeConcini.jpg, File:John Glenn Low Res.jpg, John Glenn (D-OH) File:John McCain.jpg, John McCain (R-AZ) File:Riegle2.jpg, Donald Riegle (D-MI) The Keating Five were five United States Sen ...
.


Government Integrity Project

In early February 2004, NLPC filed complaints with the
Federal Elections Commission The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent regulatory agency of the United States whose purpose is to enforce campaign finance law in United States federal elections. Created in 1974 through amendments to the Federal Election Camp ...
(FEC) for election law violations during
Al Sharpton Alfred Charles Sharpton Jr. (born October 3, 1954) is an American civil rights activist, Baptist minister, talk show host and politician. Sharpton is the founder of the National Action Network. In 2004, he was a candidate for the Democratic ...
's run for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination. A conciliation agreement made public by NLPC on April 19, 2009, described $509,188 in campaign-related expenses on Sharpton's
American Express American Express Company (Amex) is an American multinational corporation specialized in payment card services headquartered at 200 Vesey Street in the Battery Park City neighborhood of Lower Manhattan in New York City. The company was found ...
card. His campaign committee paid $121,996, leaving $385,192 in illegal payments from other sources, including $65,000 from unknown sources. NLPC Chairman Ken Boehm had accused Sharpton of running an "off the books"
presidential campaign President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
. Sharpton and his
National Action Network The National Action Network (NAN) is a not-for-profit, civil rights organization founded by the Reverend Al Sharpton in New York City, New York, in early 1991. In a 2016 profile, '' Vanity Fair'' called Sharpton "arguably the country's most infl ...
(NAN) agreed to pay a $285,000 "civil penalty" for his campaign election law violations.


Corporate Integrity Project

The Corporate Integrity Project has led campaigns against
Boeing The Boeing Company () is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, telecommunications equipment, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product ...
,
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...
/
Viacom Viacom, an abbreviation of Video and Audio Communications, may refer to: * Viacom (1952–2006), a former American media conglomerate * Viacom (2005–2019), a former company spun off from the original Viacom * Viacom18, a joint venture between Par ...
,
Fannie Mae The Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA), commonly known as Fannie Mae, is a United States government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) and, since 1968, a publicly traded company. Founded in 1938 during the Great Depression as part of the N ...
, MCI/
Worldcom MCI, Inc. (subsequently Worldcom and MCI WorldCom) was a telecommunications company. For a time, it was the second largest long-distance telephone company in the United States, after AT&T. Worldcom grew largely by acquiring other telecommunic ...
, and Subway for practices ranging from large corporate scandals to anti-American campaigns. The scandals they have unearthed have led to the firing of Boeing CFO
Michael M. Sears Michael M. Sears (born July 16, 1947) is an American former Boeing executive and convicted felon. In 1992 Sears led the successful development of the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. In 1997, Sears was President of the Douglas Aircraft Company division o ...
, the resignation of Boeing CEO
Phil Condit Philip Murray Condit (born August 2, 1941) is an American engineer and businessman who was Chair and Chief executive officer (CEO) of the Boeing company from 1996 to 2003. He dramatically reshaped the company by Merger with McDonnell Douglas and re ...
, and prison terms in 2005 for both
Darleen Druyun Darleen A. Druyun (born November 7, 1947) is a former United States Department of the Air Force civilian official, Boeing executive, and convicted felon. In 2004, Druyun pleaded guilty to a felony in relation to her role in the United States Air ...
and
Michael M. Sears Michael M. Sears (born July 16, 1947) is an American former Boeing executive and convicted felon. In 1992 Sears led the successful development of the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. In 1997, Sears was President of the Douglas Aircraft Company division o ...
.


Lawsuit v. Hillary Healthcare Task Force

NLPC was a plaintiff in the successful 1993 lawsuit to open the meetings and records of
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
's health care task force. On February 24, 1993, Hillary Rodham Clinton and the six Cabinet members serving on the task force were sued under the
Federal Advisory Committee Act The Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) (), is a United States federal law which governs the behavior of federal advisory committees. In particular, it has special emphasis on open meetings, chartering, public involvement, and reporting. The U.S. ...
(FACA) in
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia The United States District Court for the District of Columbia (in case citations, D.D.C.) is a federal district court in the District of Columbia. It also occasionally handles (jointly with the United States District Court for the District of ...
by NLPC, along with two other groups, the
Association of American Physicians and Surgeons The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS) is a politically conservative non-profit association that promotes conspiracy theories and medical misinformation, such as HIV/AIDS denialism, the abortion-breast cancer hypothesis, ...
and the
American Council for Health Care Reform American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...
. FACA requires government task forces to conduct its affairs in public if non-government employees, or "outsiders," take part. On March 10, 1993, Judge
Royce Lamberth Royce Charles Lamberth /’læm-bərth/ (born July 16, 1943) is a senior judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, who formerly served as its chief judge. Since 2015, he has sat as a visiting judge on the United Stat ...
ruled that the task force had to open its meetings to the plaintiffs and the media. Lamberth ruled that the "official" members of the task force, meaning the First Lady and the Cabinet Secretaries who comprised its membership, could not meet in secret because Clinton was not a government employee. But Lamberth also ruled that all the other people working on the plan, who were organized into "sub-groups," could continue to work in secret, because FACA was never meant to apply to staff. Lamberth's ruling was appealed by the White House, and was overturned on June 22, 1993 after the task force had supposedly already disbanded on May 30. Justice Department lawyers argued that since Hillary Rodham Clinton "functions in both a legal and practical sense as part of the government," her participation in the task force should not trigger FACA. A three-judge panel of the
U.S. Court of Appeals The United States courts of appeals are the intermediate appellate courts of the United States federal judiciary. The courts of appeals are divided into 11 numbered circuits that cover geographic areas of the United States and hear appeals fr ...
for the D.C. Circuit agreed. According to Hillary Clinton, “It was a deft political move, designed to disrupt our work on health care and to foster the impression with the public and the news media that we were conducting ‘secret’ meetings.”


FDA Commissioner David Kessler Resignation

In 1996, NLPC exposed over-billing by then-FDA Commissioner David Kessler on his government expense reimbursements. Kessler resigned soon after. In his 2001 book A ''Question of Intent,'' Kessler wrote that NLPC “brought me as close to despair as I have ever been.”


Boeing Tanker Deal Scandal

On October 6, 2003, NLPC filed a formal Complaint with the
Inspector General of the Department of Defense The Department of Defense Inspector General (DoDIG) is an independent, objective agency that provides oversight related to the programs and operations of the United States Department of Defense (DoD). DoD IG was created in 1982 as an amendment t ...
and the Defense Department Criminal Investigative Service, which was the basis for a front-page ''Wall Street Journal'' article the next day. The NLPC's complaint detailed how Defense Department procurement officer
Darleen Druyun Darleen A. Druyun (born November 7, 1947) is a former United States Department of the Air Force civilian official, Boeing executive, and convicted felon. In 2004, Druyun pleaded guilty to a felony in relation to her role in the United States Air ...
, while still at the Pentagon, sold her house to a Boeing executive who was also working on the tanker deal. The Complaint specifically raised the possibility that Druyun had negotiated employment with Boeing while still at the Pentagon. Federal law prohibits defense acquisition officials from discussing jobs with companies unless they recuse themselves from contract decisions involving those companies. On November 24, 2003, Druyun and Boeing Chief Financial Officer
Michael M. Sears Michael M. Sears (born July 16, 1947) is an American former Boeing executive and convicted felon. In 1992 Sears led the successful development of the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. In 1997, Sears was President of the Douglas Aircraft Company division o ...
were fired. One week later, Boeing Chief Executive Office
Phil Condit Philip Murray Condit (born August 2, 1941) is an American engineer and businessman who was Chair and Chief executive officer (CEO) of the Boeing company from 1996 to 2003. He dramatically reshaped the company by Merger with McDonnell Douglas and re ...
resigned. On October 1, 2004, Druyun was sentenced to nine months in prison by U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia. On February 18, 2005, Sears was sentenced to four months in prison and fined $250,000 by U.S. District Court Judge Gerald Lee.


Rep. Alan Mollohan

In 2006, NLPC filed a 500-page Complaint with the Justice Department alleging that
Alan Mollohan Alan Bowlby Mollohan (born May 14, 1943) is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 1983 to 2011. He was a member of the Democratic Party and the Blue Dog Coalition. The district encompasses the northern part of th ...
’s financial disclosure forms contained omissions and misrepresentations that obscured a significant increase in his personal wealth at the time he earmarked more than $250 million to nonprofit groups in his district founded and controlled by business partners and campaign contributors. The Complaint triggered a four-year federal investigation and was the basis for a front-page ''Wall Street Journal'' story on April 6, 2006 by the late John R. Wilke that touched off a firestorm. The ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' editorialized on April 12, 2006 that Mollohan’s “shady dealings” meant that he should resign from the House Ethics Committee, which he did on April 21, 2006. On April 25, 2006, Wilke wrote another front-page ''
Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
'' story detailing how Mollohan had bought a farm with the CEO of a defense contractor for whose firm Mollohan had added funds to a spending bill. For this reporting, Wilke won the 2007 Everett McKinley Dirksen Award for Distinguished Reporting of Congress, awarded by the National Press Foundation. The Complaint was also the basis for a May 17, 2006 ''New York Times'' article by Jodi Rudoren and Aron Pilhofer describing Mollohan’s undisclosed ownership of a Washington, D.C. condominium building known as The Remington. In an implicit admission of the disclosure failures uncovered by NLPC, Mollohan on June 14, 2006 amended six years of disclosure forms. On January 26, 2010, the Justice Department announced that no charges would be filed against Mollohan. On May 11, 2010, Mollohan lost a Democratic primary to State Senator
Mike Oliverio Michael Angelo Oliverio II (born August 6, 1963) is a former State Senator for the 13th district and the 2010 Democratic nominee for U.S. Representative for . He previously served in the West Virginia House of Delegates. Oliverio ran for his ...
in a race where Mollohan’s ethics were the predominant issue. Mollohan had held the seat for 28 years. In November 2014,
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) and nonpartisan U.S. government ethics and accountability watchdog organization.''Washington Information Directory 2017-2018''; CQ Press; 2017; Pg. 327 Founded ...
(CREW) received hundreds of pages of documents related to the Justice Department investigation in response to a Freedom of Information Act request. CREW’s executive director Melanie Sloan stated, “ It was clear the Justice Department should have indicted Mollohan.”


GOP Mystery Donor

In 2012, NLPC provided the New York Times with information about James Robert Williams, who made almost $900,000 in political contributions to mostly Republican candidates. Williams had no visible means of support and lived in a small apartment in Queens. Following the July 28 front-page article, Williams dropped from sight.


Auto Bailout and 2014 General Motors Recall

NLPC was a high-profile critic of the bailout of the auto industry by the United States government. NLPC’s spokesman was Mark Modica, a former Saturn dealer business manager and wiped-out GM bondholder. Following a demand by NLPC, General Motors in 2014 recalled 1.3 million vehicles with a steering loss defect uncovered by Modica.


New York State prosecutions

NLPC exposed corruption that sent seven New York state political figures to jail. Newspaper headlines, starting with a January 31, 2010 New York Post exposé of on  of a nonprofit called New Direction Local Development Corporation, associated with U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY), prompted a series of investigations.


Senator Robert Menendez

Senator
Robert Menendez Robert Menendez (; born January 1, 1954) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States senator from New Jersey, a seat he has held since 2006. Gale (publisher), Gale Biography I ...
(D-NJ) was indicted in April 2015, along with Dr. Salomon Melgen, his largest campaign contributor, partly on the basis of information made public by NLPC through a front-page New York Times story on February 1, 2013. Melgen is a wealthy south Florida eye doctor and the charges related to Menendez’ attempts to derail a Medicare fraud investigation into Melgen’s practice and securing visas for three Melgen “girlfriends.” The indictment also alleged that Menendez pushed a port security deal in the Dominican Republic that would have provided a windfall for Melgen. The indictment alleges Melgen provided Menendez with private jet ride rides, Dominican vacations, and donations to his legal defense fund. Information on the port security deal was provided by NLPC to the Times. The Justice Department chose not to retry Menendez after his trial ended in a mistrial on November 16, 2017. On August  8, 2018, NLPC filed a Freedom of Information Act request for documents pertaining to the prosecution and the decision not to retry Menendez. Then-NLPC Chairman Ken Boehm suggested that Menendez was the beneficiary of political influence.


Rep. Maxine Waters

In 2018, NLPC filed two complaints against Rep.
Maxine Waters Maxine Moore Waters (née Carr; born August 15, 1938) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 1991. The district, numbered as the 29th district from 1991 to 1993 and as the 35th district from 1993 to 2013, incl ...
(D-CA) with the
Federal Election Commission The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent regulatory agency of the United States whose purpose is to enforce campaign finance law in United States federal elections. Created in 1974 through amendments to the Federal Election Cam ...
. The complaints alleged campaign finance violations for using a slate mailer, a mass mailing supporting or opposing "a total of four or more candidates or ballot measures." One complaint cited a payment to her campaign fund from the Democratic State Central Committee of California (DSCCC) for the inclusion of Senate candidate
Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who is the 49th vice president of the United States. She is the first female vice president and the highest-ranking female official in U.S. history, as well ...
on Waters’ slate mailer. The Federal Election Commission dismissed the allegation, stating that "the payment on behalf of the Harris committee was a coordinated party expenditure within the olitical ReformActs’ limit." The second complaint cited a payment to her campaign fund from a group called "Families and Teachers for Antonio" for inclusion of former Los Angeles mayor and California gubernatorial candidate
Antonio Villaraigosa Antonio Ramón Villaraigosa (; né Villar Jr.; born January 23, 1953) is an American politician who served as the 41st Mayor of Los Angeles from 2005 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Villaraigosa was a national co-chairman of Hillary ...
on the mailer. The Federal Election Commission used prosecutorial discretion to dismiss the allegation, stating that, although the Waters Committee had received an excessive contribution and returned the group’s payment exceeding the attributable costs of the mailer "beyond the 60-day regulatory timeframe," the amount in question had been modest.


Constitutional Challenge to Mueller Authority

NLPC provided financial and logistical support to a constitutional challenge to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s appointment and authority by Andrew Miller, a former aide to indicted GOP operative
Roger Stone Roger Jason Stone (born Roger Joseph Stone Jr.; August 27, 1952) is an American conservative political consultant and lobbyist. Since the 1970s, Stone has worked on the campaigns of Republican politicians, including Richard Nixon, Ronald Rea ...
, who has subpoenaed in the case. Miller was represented by constitutional and appellate attorney Paul Kamenar, who worked on a partial pro bono basis. NLPC Chairman Peter Flaherty told the
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
on June 28, 2018, “The founders feared exactly what we see in Mueller: a runaway federal official. We hope to see Mueller’s operation disbanded, once and for all.” The challenge had its genesis in a May 13, 2018 ''Wall Street Journal'' op-ed by Northwestern Law Professor Steven Calabresi. He argued that Mueller’s appointment violated the
Appointments Clause The Appointments Clause of Article II, Section 2, Clause 2, of the United States Constitution empowers the President of the United States to nominate and, with the advice and consent (confirmation) of the United States Senate, appoint public offi ...
because Mueller was acting like a “principal officer” requiring presidential appointment and Senate confirmation, rather than as an “inferior officer.” Calabresi encouraged anyone charged or called as a witness by Mueller to challenge his appointment. The challenge was initiated on June 28, 2018, when Kamenar filed a Motion to Quash the subpoena issued to appear before Mueller’s grand jury on the basis that Mueller’s appointment was unconstitutional. In the Motion to Quash, Kamenar made three principal arguments: # Congress did not authorize the appointment of a Special Counsel as an officer of the United States. # Mueller is a principal officer and should have been appointed by the President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate like all U.S. Attorneys. # If Mueller is an inferior officer as he claims, the Appointments Clause requires that he be appointed by the “head of the department,” which was Attorney General Jeff Sessions, not Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. President Trump tweeted on several occasions about one of the central issues of the case, that Mueller was never confirmed by the Senate. The challenge was first heard by Hon.
Beryl Howell Beryl Alaine Howell (born December 3, 1956) is an American lawyer and jurist who serves as a U.S. district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. She was district's chief judge from 2016 to 2023. As chief judge, ...
, the Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on July 18, 2018. On August 2, 2018, Howell ruled against Miller, meaning Mueller could enforce the subpoena. On August 10, 2018, Miller refused to answer any Grand Jury questions and was held in Contempt of Court by Howell. On August 13, 2018, Kamenar appealed Howell’s decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. Oral arguments took place on November 8, 2018 before a three-judge panel. The hearing, which lasted well over an hour, took place against the backdrop of the resignation of Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Presiding was Judge Karen Henderson appointed by George H.W. Bush. The other two panelists were
Sri Srinivasan Padmanabhan Srikanth "Sri" Srinivasan (; born February 23, 1967) is an Indian-born American lawyer and jurist serving as the chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Before he was a circuit judge, Srinivas ...
, appointed by Obama, and
Judith W. Rogers Judith Ann Wilson Rogers (born July 27, 1939) is a Senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Education and career Born in New York City, Rogers received an Artium Baccalaureus ...
, appointed by Clinton. Kamenar focused on Mueller’s “free rein” and told the Court, “The special counsel does exercise extraordinary prosecutorial and governmental powers. He can bring indictments in multiple jurisdictions. He’s like a U.S. attorney at-large. He can indict without consulting the acting attorney general.” On February 26, 2019, the Court ruled against Miller, issuing an unexpectedly brief decision of only 16 pages after taking an unexpectedly long three months after the oral argument. On April 12, 2019 Kamenar filed a Motion for a rehearing before an en banc panel of all eleven judges of the Court. On April 29, 2019, the Court denied the request. On May 6, 2019, Kamenar filed a Motion to stay the mandate against Miller, meaning that Miller would not have to testify until Kamenar could file an appeal with the Supreme Court. On May 21, the Appeals Court denied the Motion, and remanded the case to the District Court. Out of legal options to further forestall the subpoena, Miller agreed on May 29 to testify before the Mueller-convened grand jury, effectively ending the constitutional challenge. On May 31, Miller answered grand jury questions for two hours, and according to Kamenar, did not invoke his Fifth Amendment rights.


References


External links

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Organizational Profile
National Center for Charitable Statistics The National Center for Charitable Statistics (NCCS) is a clearing house for information about the nonprofit sector of the U.S. economy. The National Center for Charitable Statistics builds national, state, and regional databases and develops st ...
(
Urban Institute The Urban Institute is a Washington, D.C.–based think tank that carries out economic and social policy research to "open minds, shape decisions, and offer solutions". The institute receives funding from government contracts, foundations and pr ...
)
Financial supporters
predominately from foundations associated with the Scaife family {{Authority control Government watchdog groups in the United States Legal organizations based in the United States Charities based in Virginia