Latest news with #lobbyist
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
NC candidate accused of finance violation. Now she may give lobbyist's money back
A Republican candidate for North Carolina Supreme Court is accused of violating campaign finance law by accepting a donation from a lobbyist while serving as a sitting lawmaker. Longtime campaign finance watchdog Bob Hall filed a complaint Thursday with the State Board of Elections alleging that Rep. Sarah Stevens broke the law in June when she took a $6,800 campaign contribution — the maximum allowed — from Harold Brubaker, a registered lobbyist and former Republican speaker of the state House. 'The law's focus is clearly on prohibiting a lobbyist's contribution that directly benefits a legislator,' Hall wrote in his complaint. NC Newsline first reported the news of Brubaker's contribution on Thursday. Paul Shumaker, an adviser to Stevens' campaign, said he believes the prohibition presents an inconsistency in state law because state lawmakers running for federal office are allowed to take contributions from lobbyists while serving in the General Assembly. Most recently, former House Speaker Tim Moore helped fund his congressional campaign with donations from lobbyists. Furthermore, judicial candidates who don't currently serve in the legislature are allowed to accept donations from lobbyists, meaning that the prohibition would not apply to Stevens' opponent, Democratic Justice Anita Earls. The issue could be challenged in court, Shumaker said, but for now he has advised Stevens to refund the donation. 'If the lobbyists want to fight for their First Amendment right to political free speech on what clearly is an unconstitutional statute, they could choose to do so,' he said. 'In the last 17 years, we've never found one willing to do that.' Asked whether Brubaker's contribution violates state law, a spokesperson for the State Board of Elections told The News & Observer that the agency does not comment on specific transactions until completing an examination of a report. State law says lobbyists may not make campaign contributions to state lawmakers and adds additional restrictions on contributions while the General Assembly is in session. Brubaker's donation was made on June 30, per campaign finance records, when the legislature was still in session. Hall said the law is clear that the contribution is prohibited even though it is intended for a judicial campaign, rather than a legislative one. 'I do not doubt that (Brubaker and Stevens) believe that the $6,800 contribution was legal,' he wrote. 'They did not intend to break state law. However, I believe the contribution should be declared illegal and forfeited.' According to lobbying records kept by the secretary of state, Brubaker is registered to lobby for a variety of companies and organizations this year, including Amazon, Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina and the North Carolina Bankers Association. Stevens' campaign finance reports show she accepted a contribution from at least one other lobbyist. Andy Munn, who is registered to lobby for AARP North Carolina and a variety of other clients, donated $1,500 to her campaign in June. Stevens is the only Republican who has announced a campaign to take Earls' seat so far. Earls is one of only two Democrats on the high court. While flipping the court's 5-2 Republican majority is not on the table in 2026, Democrats hope that defending Earls' seat will make it easier for the party to regain control in 2028, when three Republican justices are up for reelection. So far, Earls' campaign has significantly outraised Stevens', bringing in over $585,000 in contributions. That's over four times as much as Stevens has raised, having reported about $141,000 in total contributions in her most recent campaign finance report. The race comes on the heels of a chaotic six-month legal battle over the results of the 2024 Supreme Court election, in which Republican candidate Jefferson Griffin unsuccessfully attempted to overturn his narrow loss to Democratic incumbent Allison Riggs.
CBC
02-08-2025
- Business
- CBC
Artists push back after Canadian Taxpayers Federation calls for end to Sask. public arts funding
A Prairie lobbyist said the $6.5 million allocated to SK Arts annually should not be spent on "artist passion projects" during a time of growing provincial debt. But artists say that ignores how art impacts the province's economy and its people.
Bloomberg
31-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Goldman's Long-Serving Top Lobbyist Replaced by Republican Fixer
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. 's chief global lobbyist, Michael Paese, is moving on after 16 years and will be replaced by a lifelong Republican at the helm of a team pushing the Wall Street bank's policy goals on the Trump administration. Known as a straight talker in Washington, Paese will become a senior adviser at the firm and support Goldman's philanthropy as a member of its foundation's board, according to a memo Thursday that was seen by Bloomberg News. Paese, a 58-year-old former Democratic lawyer, will be succeeded by Michael Thompson, who worked for two Republican senators and a congressman from the party earlier in his career.
Yahoo
22-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Minnesota lobbyist arrested after allegedly sending threatening texts
A longtime Minnesota lobbyist was charged Friday after allegedly making violent threats 'with the purpose to terrorize another' person, according to court documents. Jonathan M. Bohn, 41, is accused of committing 'threats of violence — reckless disregard' after he allegedly sent a series of threatening text messages. The charge, a felony, carries a penalty of up to five years in prison, a $10,000 fine, or both. While the court document, filed in the 1st Judicial District of Carver County, does not include the name of the person to whom Bohn, a lobbyist for 20 years, allegedly sent the texts, it does include samples of several texts threatening in nature. In one message, Bohn allegedly wrote in part, 'Today I bought 500 bullets. I can't wait to shoot one of you motherf-----s in the face.' In another message, he allegedly wrote, 'Excited to have my gun at the Capitol and blow somebody's f-----g face off.' On Friday, a judge in Chaska, Minnesota, set Bohn's bail at $1 million and ordered that he have no contact with the person he allegedly made the threatening comments to. The judge also ordered that Bohn must stay at least a half-mile away from the Capitol complex. Bohn allegedly sent the flurry of threatening texts on Wednesday. Court documents suggest he was allegedly spurred on after seeing a friend post an image of President Donald Trump as a king. It appears the friend changed the image ahead of the June 14 'No Kings Day' march, a protest against Trump, according to NBC affiliate KARE of Minneapolis. Earlier on June 14, state Rep. Melissa Hortman, the former state House speaker, and her husband, Mark Hortman, were shot and killed in their homes. State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were also shot in their homes. John Hoffman, who was shot nine times, is in critical but stable condition. Despite Bohn's alleged series of erratic text messages, the person who received them did not respond to Bohn, according to court documents. During a search of Bohn's home, police say they found a gun but no ammunition. As he sat in court on Friday, Bohn wept through the proceedings, according to KARE. He later released a statement from jail. 'Earlier this week, I was grieving the horrific acts of violence committed against my friends and colleagues,' he said. 'In the midst of this immense grief, I sent a series of heated and emotional texts to a friend of nearly thirteen years — someone with whom I've shared countless candid and passionate political conversations. In that moment of anguish, I used language that I deeply regret. The words were spoken from pain, not from intent. I am a hurting person, not a violent one.' He went on to say that he is not a violent person. 'I am profoundly sorry that my words have created a distraction during this time of collective mourning. This moment demands unity, compassion, and reflection — and I am committed to being part of that healing.' As his case moves through the court system, Bohn is on administrative leave from the Inter Faculty Organization (IFO), which represents the needs of seven Minnesota state universities. 'We are monitoring developments closely, cooperating as needed with law enforcement and will continue to keep our members informed,' said IFO President Jenna Chernega in a statement to KARE. Bohn's next court date is Aug. 27. This article was originally published on
Yahoo
20-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Lobbyist accused of threating shooting at MN Capitol charged with felony
A Minnesota lobbyist accused of sending text messages threatening to shoot people at the state Capitol now faces a felony charge. Jonathan Michael Bohn, 41, of Woodbury, has been charged with threats of violence after allegedly sending a string of 'threatening and disparaging' messages to an acquaintance, the Carver County Attorney's Office announced Friday. Bohn, a lobbyist with the Inter Faculty Organization, a union that represents faculty at Minnesota state universities, said he had bought '500 bullets' and was 'excited to have my gun at the capitol and blow somebody's (expletive) face off,' prosecutors allege. The alleged threats did not mention any specific state lawmaker. A person received the messages while at a restaurant in Waconia on Wednesday, according to the criminal complaint, which leaves the alleged victim unnamed for privacy reasons. They came after a 'falling out with the victim over political differences,' the Carver County Attorney's Office said in a news release on the charges. After learning of the alleged threats, law enforcement obtained a search warrant for Bohn's Woodbury home and found an unloaded firearm in a locked case in his garage, according to the complaint. Police questioned took him into custody. Bohn remained in the Carver County Jail in Chaska Friday afternoon. At his bail hearing Friday, Judge Eric Braaten set Bohn's bond at $1 million, ordered no contact with the alleged victim and ordered him to stay at least half a mile away from the Minnesota Capitol. In a statement, the Inter Faculty Organization said it had placed Bohn on administrative leave. 'The Inter Faculty Organization (IFO) condemns political violence and threats of violence in any form,' union president Jenna Chernega said in a statement. 'Such acts are unacceptable and stand in direct opposition to the values that guide our work: civil discourse, mutual respect, and advocacy rooted in integrity.' Rep. Jim Nash, a Waconia Republican, reported the threatening text to law enforcement on Wednesday. Nash notified the House sergeant at arms, State Patrol and Carver County Sheriff's Office of a 'personal text message to a constituent that was threatening in nature,' the Minnesota House GOP Caucus said in a news release. 'The threat was not aimed at any particular lawmaker but the message did include a threat of violence at the Capitol,' House Republicans said. The news release didn't identify the suspect but said authorities questioned and arrested the person on Wednesday. Republicans said the House sergeant at arms is not aware of any further threats to the Legislature or its staff. Sen. John Hoffman, wife say daughter alerted police to politically motivated shootings Lobbyist in custody for 'threat of violence' at Minnesota Capitol UMN hikes tuition 6.5%, makes program cuts at all campuses Julian Scadden: Recent grads can build their futures in the trades Maple Grove lawmaker confirms gunman visited her home Bohn's arrest comes less than a week after a shooting spree that took the lives of former House Speaker Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, and her husband, Mark, and injured Sen. John Hoffman, DFL-Champlin, and his wife, Yvette. The alleged gunman visited the homes of two additional lawmakers that same night and had notebooks naming dozens more targets, federal prosecutors said this week. Lawmakers' home addresses have already been removed from the Minnesota Legislature's website, and the Capitol saw a larger security presence than usual this week. Elected officials have again called for new security measures at the state Capitol, such as entry checkpoints with metal detectors and X-ray machines.
