News Corp-Funded ‘U.S.’ Chamber Leading Campaign To Weaken Key Anti-Bribery Law

[kpete]

Source: Think Progress

News Corp-Funded ‘U.S.’ Chamber Leading Campaign To Weaken Key Anti-Bribery Law

By Josh Dorner on Jul 13, 2011 at 7:30 pm


News Corporation faces a potential U.S. investigation and prosecution under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), a law that bars companies with U.S. ties from bribing foreign officials to get or retain business, stemming from widely-reported allegations of bribing police. News Corp, like several other major corporations recently targeted under the law, would not only be liable for the costs of any investigation — whether or not it is ever charged — but could also face billions in fines and even jail time for its executives if it were found guilty of violating of the anti-corruption statute.

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This stepped up enforcement of the FCPA has not escaped the notice of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which has reportedly received millions of dollars in funding from News Corp. The Chamber is now leading a high-profile campaign to weaken the landmark anti-bribery law.

On October 27, 2010, the Chamber’s Institute for Legal Reform held a summit at which it released a white paper outlining the Chamber’s suggestions for weakening the FCPA. After its 2010 summit, the Chamber began actively lobbying Congress to weaken the FCPA. In March of this year, the Chamber’s ILR hired marquee talent, former Bush administration Attorney General Michael Mukasey, to aid in its push to weaken the law. According to filings with the Senate, the Chamber’s ILR spent $6,030,000 lobbying on the FCPA and numerous other bills during the first quarter of 2011. During the 4th quarter of 2010, the Chamber’s ILR spent an additional $14,490,000 lobbying on the FCPA and other bills.

In addition to its own direct lobbying activities, the Chamber’s ILR engaged several lobbying firms during the first half of this year to help it push Congress to weaken the anti-bribery law, including Brownstein, Hyatt, Farber, and Schreck; Hollier & Associates; Akin, Gump, Strauer, Hauer & Feld; and Debevoise & Plimpton (Mukasey’s firm).

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Read more: http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2011/07/13/266015/news-corp-chamber-weaken-fcpa/

[Kingofalldems]

1. Their tentacles are everywhere

[SpankMe]

5. Their testicles are everywhere.

[fascisthunter]

2. Oh My... the Fascist Conspiracy to over-throw our democracy is coming out

hey right wing lurker... fuck you and have a heart attack.

[Vinnie From Indy]

3. A few bucks a few jobs promised there and this law is toast

We live in country with a cash and carry government. From cities to Congress, we are all at the mercy of those that own our political process.

[neverforget]

4. US Chamber of Cleptocracy

[KoKo]

6. Attorney Genera Eric Holder...please pick up the "courtesy phone in the lobby."

This is an EMERGENCY!

[Grrrfun]

7. weakening laws, slashing taxes for the super rich, squashing dissent

just another day on the hill for the billionaire gang

[wordpix]

8. "could also face billions in fines and even jail time for its executives"---sounds good to me

However, I'm still waiting for BP's fines from the Gulf oil blowout. :grr:

[madrchsod]

9. news corp is going under....

the brits are going to basically kill off news corp in england.

so what is our government going to do?...sit around with their thumbs up their asses?

[glinda]

10. Our government reveals itself. These Corpses go down, the Government goes down. Hey!

[JDPriestly]

11. So, Fox is pro-corruption. Now that's interesting. Wonder why?

Wonder what the Tea-Baggers would say about this?

[No Elephants]

12. We need a domestic corrupt practices act, to get our politicians off

the corporate teat.

Oh, wait. The RW SCOTUS has already declared that kind of law unconstitutional.


never mind.

[Uncle Joe]

13. Just another aspect of how this corrupt malignancy has metastasized.

Thanks for the thread, kpete.

[myrna minx]

14. It's just overt corruption now - no need to hide it because there aren't any

consequences anyway.

[yurbud]

15. geeze, it's hard to believe there even is such a law given the state of our politics.