AAS: Earle, Sears strike a deal in election case

Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle dismissed a felony indictment Thursday against Sears, Roebuck and Co., the second corporation to avoid prosecution after agreeing to help Earle's investigation of corporate spending in the 2002 legislative elections.

Earle, Sears strike a deal in election case

Company will aid in investigation in exchange for dismissal of charges

By Jason Embry, Austin American-Statesman
Friday, December 31, 2004

Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle dismissed a felony indictment Thursday against Sears, Roebuck and Co., the second corporation to avoid prosecution after agreeing to help Earle's investigation of corporate spending in the 2002 legislative elections.

The Illinois-based retail giant was one of eight companies charged with making illegal political donations. The indictments, handed down in September, stemmed from Earle's two-year investigation of Texans for a Republican Majority, an organization that U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay helped create. Three DeLay associates also were indicted.

In its agreement with Earle, Sears promised to cooperate in the "prosecution and investigation of any other person for any offense related to the corporate contribution made by the defendant." The company also agreed that it will not make any illegal political contributions in any state and that it will disclose corporate contributions on its Web site.

The agreement states that Earle believes the offense by Sears was an isolated incident in Texas. It also states that Earle thinks the evidence shows that Sears made the contribution based on false information from the fund-raiser who solicited the contribution, and that the company did not intend to violate state law.

The fund-raiser mentioned in the agreement is Warren Robold, who was hired to raise money for the Republican political action committee primarily from corporations, said Rusty Hardin, Robold's lawyer.

A similar allegation about misleading information from a fund-raiser was mentioned in an agreement filed earlier this month dismissing charges against California-based Diversified Collection Services.

Hardin said his client did not mislead the companies about how their money would be used.

"I want to meet the man that's going to get on the stand and swear under oath that he was given false and misleading information," Hardin said.

Robold was indicted on nine counts of accepting and making illegal corporate contributions.

Sears, which gave the Republican group $25,000, welcomed the dismissal. The company plans to financially support educational programs at the University of Texas on the laws governing political contributions and the role of corporations and other groups in politics.

Thursday's dismissal appeared to be the latest step in Earle's divide-and-conquer strategy to strengthen his case against the defendants. Along with Robold, the grand jury indicted John Colyandro, the former executive director of the Republican group, and Jim Ellis, who was DeLay's chief fund-raiser.

Lawyers for those defendants said they were not worried about Sears' cooperation in the case because their clients are not guilty. Ellis and Colyandro filed documents this week seeking to have their indictments dropped.

Colyandro's lawyer, Joe Turner, argued that his client could not have accepted illegal corporate contributions because he is not a candidate, officeholder or political committee. Texas law states that only those three entities are capable of illegally accepting contributions.

J.D. Pauerstein, Ellis' lawyer, argued that the election law is too broad and too vague and that the indictment doesn't support the charge that Ellis laundered money, among other arguments.

Ellis and Colyandro were indicted on one count of money laundering each. Colyandro also was indicted on 13 counts of unlawful acceptance of a corporate political contribution.

The Republican committee helped the GOP take control of the state House, a goal that was important to DeLay because he wanted the Legislature to draw new congressional districts that favored Republicans.

Earle has said other indictments could follow.

Houston Chronicle: Perry's gifts get noticed

As the largest political donor in Texas elections, Houston home builder Bob Perry and the pro-business measures he advocates get noticed in Austin. After he pumped $3.8 million into the 2002 Texas elections, the Legislature approved several policy proposals that Perry supported.

Houston builder donated $9 million to Republicans in 2004 elections

By JOHN FRANK, Houston Chronicle
Dec. 26, 2004

WASHINGTON - As the largest political donor in Texas elections, Houston home builder Bob Perry and the pro-business measures he advocates get noticed in Austin.

After he pumped $3.8 million into the 2002 Texas elections, the Legislature approved several policy proposals that Perry supported.

With the 2004 presidential election, the Perry Homes founder surged onto the national political scene, becoming the nation's biggest Republican donor with $9.6 million in personal contributions to candidates, committees and political advocacy groups.

The question remains whether the political clout he enjoys in Texas will extend to national politics. But there is certainly harmonized thinking on the policy scene. President Bush is trying to breathe new life into what his supporters call tort reform — limits on damage awards in lawsuits. Perry has promoted the issue.

"Clearly, with this level of giving, he has instant access to any Republican member of Congress or member of the (Bush) administration, if he wants it," said Craig McDonald, director of Texans for Public Justice, a left-leaning campaign watchdog group. "Donations to the tune of $9 million will get you in the door at any political level."

Final numbers from the election show that Perry and his wife, Doylene, contributed more than $9.6 million during the two-year election cycle to mostly Republican politicians, committees and political advocacy groups at the federal level, according to an analysis by the nonpartisan Center for Public Integrity and the Houston Chronicle. Nearly all Perry's contibutions were presented as unlimited gifts to 527 groups, political advocacy organizations so-called because of their designation in the federal tax code, the Center's analysis showed.

His rationale for dumping in such an unusually large sum is unknown. Perry declined a request by the Chronicle for an interview, instead directing calls to Bill Miller, his Austin-based spokesman and lobbyist.

"This was an anomaly and it was a product of George (Bush) being on the ticket and (responding to) the 527s being heavily used by the Democrats," Miller said. "I would be surprised if his participation continues at the level of this year. But he's always a man who will surprise you."

In the 2000 election cycle, Perry gave at least $400,000 to federal candidates, political parties and 527s. The 527s began reporting contributions in the summer of 2000, after some money may have been contributed. Miller said Perry, no relation to Gov. Rick Perry, usually focuses his political contributions at state and local levels.

In 2004, Perry gave at least $5 million to Republican candidates for the Legislature and judicial posts, according to preliminary numbers analyzed by Fred Lewis, director of Campaigns for People, an Austin-based campaign finance reform group.

It was Perry's involvement with the 527 groups that brought the publicity-shy Houstonian to the national political scene. His $100,000 check bankrolled the first Swift Boat Veterans for Truth TV ad questioning Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry's Vietnam War military service.

The Swift Boat Veterans were co-founded by Houston lawyer John O'Neill, who this year called Perry a "casual friend." As the attention on O'Neill's group increased, so did Perry's checks. He gave more than a third of the total $17 million the group raised.

Just more than a half billion dollars was spent altogether by these unregulated 527 groups, a majority of which supported Democratic candidates, the Center reported.

Ultimately, four Democratic 527 donors, including billionaire financier George Soros and Peter Lewis, chairman of auto insurer Progressive Corp., topped the list. They spent more than $23 million each.

Some observers say Perry, though, remains one of the best-situated to capitalize on his role in these elections and benefit from his contributions.

Houston Chronicle: Bush nominee's work for Enron at issue

White House counsel Alberto Gonzales, President Bush's choice to be his next U.S. attorney general, may want to recuse himself from the Enron prosecutions if he takes over the reins of the Justice Department.

Bush nominee's work for Enron at issue

Proposed attorney general may recuse self in prosecution

By DAVID IVANOVICH, Houston Chronicle
November 20, 2004

WASHINGTON - White House counsel Alberto Gonzales, President Bush's choice to be his next U.S. attorney general, may want to recuse himself from the Enron prosecutions if he takes over the reins of the Justice Department.

Gonzales did legal work for Enron in the early 1990s, while in private practice at Vinson & Elkins in Houston, which did a lot of legal work for the energy giant.

Gonzales helped Enron set up EOTT Energy Partners, a master limited partnership involved in gathering, transporting and trading crude oil, refined products and natural gas liquids.

His last billing for Enron-related work was in May 1994, noted Henry Reasoner, a partner with the firm. Enron collapsed seven years later.

Gonzales left Vinson & Elkins the following year to become then-Texas Gov. Bush's general counsel. He would later go on to serve as secretary of state and then as a justice on the Texas Supreme Court.

While serving on the bench, Gonzales received a $6,000 campaign contribution from Enron's now defunct political action committee, as well as $500 from an Enron employee, according to campaign records tracked by Austin-based Texans for Public Justice.

As attorney general, Gonzales would have the right to decide whether to distance himself from the Enron case.

White House officials refused to say whether Gonzales likely would recuse himself. An administration spokeswoman said all such questions will have to wait until Gonzales' nomination hearing.

If he does decided to stay out of the Enron matter, Gonzales would be following the lead of current Attorney General John Ashcroft.

Ashcroft, a former Republican senator from Missouri, received $57,499 in contributions from Enron during his unsuccessful effort to retain his seat in 2000, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

One-time Enron Chief Executive Officer Ken Lay contributed $25,000 in soft money to Ashcroft's fund-raising committee, the Ashcroft Victory Fund.

The Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to consider Gonzales' nomination early next year.

Because he had a direct conflict as performing legal work for the company, most observers think it highly likely he will steer clear of the case.

"There is no law that governs this," noted Steven Lubet, a law professor at Northwestern University. "There is no ethical principle that would preclude him from involvement in the Enron prosecutions."

But prudence, Lubet said, would suggest he "leave it to somebody else."

Steven Weiss with the Washington-based Center for Responsive Politics said Gonzales and his advisers will have to evaluate the political calculus of the Enron case.

If he does distance himself, Gonzales could face more questions about why he feels the need to distance himself from a disgraced company.

"If he doesn't recuse himself and somehow acts in a way that's perceived to be in Enron's interests, he'll face accusations of doing a favor for a former supporter," Weiss said.

AAS: Texas contributors' millions were key in financing issue ads by so-called 527s

Unregulated political committees that dominated the presidential election, such as Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, raised and spent a half-billion dollars during the 2003-04 election cycle, according to a report by the Center for Public Integrity.

Texas contributors' millions were key in financing issue ads by so-called 527s

By Laylan Copelin, Austin American-Statesman
Sunday, December 19, 2004

Unregulated political committees that dominated the presidential election, such as Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, raised and spent a half-billion dollars during the 2003-04 election cycle, according to a report by the Center for Public Integrity.

Texans, including Austin high-tech entrepreneur Jonathan McHale, played a key role in providing the money.

Houston home builder Bob Perry grabbed the headlines by underwriting the initial TV commercials by Swift Boat Veterans for Truth that questioned the war record of Democratic presidential hopeful John Kerry. He gave a total of $9.6 million to various committees.

On the other side, McHale, who last week sold his company, TippingPoint Technologies Inc., gave $3.1 million, almost all to Media Fund, a so-called 527 committee that supported Kerry's campaign.

The 527s, named for the section of the tax code that created them, have been around for the past three election cycles. But they emerged as decisive players in this presidential election, spending a record amount of money as a response to tighter spending restrictions under the McCain-Feingold campaign finance law, according to the study.

That law, among other things, was to curtail unregulated "soft money," mostly from corporations and unions, that political parties used to finance thinly veiled issue ads praising or attacking politicians without directly calling for their election or defeat. Taking up that role this year were the 527s.

"In the 21st century in the United States of America, it is astonishingly easy to assassinate a political opponent's character with little or no accountability or basis in fact," said Charles Lewis, executive director of the Washington-based nonpartisan research center that issued the report Thursday.

The 527 committees spent $550 million on elections. Fifty-three committees that focused almost exclusively on the presidential election raised $246 million.

In all, six Texans were among the top 25 individual donors to 527 committees: Perry (fifth), $9.6 million; Hyatt hotel heiress Linda Pritzker of Houston (sixth), $7.6 million; Dallas businessman T. Boone Pickens (seventh), $5.1 million; Dallas businessman

Harold Simmons (13th), $3.7 million; McHale (16th), $3.1 million; and Wal-Mart heiress Alice Walton, who lives on a ranch near Mineral Wells (22nd), $2.6 million.

Perry is no stranger to Texas politicians as a donor. In recent years he has eclipsed James Leininger, a San Antonio businessman, as the state's biggest individual donor, mostly to Republicans and pro-business causes.

McHale has no track record in state elections. He declined to discuss why he gave so generously on the national level this year.

He is an entrepreneur with a successful record with startups. McHale's share of TippingPoint, which provides network security technology and was bought by 3Com Corp., is worth $89.2 million.

In Washington, there will be debate in Congress and at the Federal Election Commission on the future role of 527s.

The Texas Legislature also is expected to consider changes in its campaign finance system.

Craig McDonald, executive director of Texans for Public Justice, a group that studies campaign finance, said 527s have not played a significant role in state elections so far.

Unlike federal law, the state campaign finance law does not limit how much money individuals or political action committees can give to candidates or spend on their behalf.

"The 527 loophole (unlimited donations) is the law here," McDonald said.

That's not to say the 527s won't play a future role, especially if the Legislature were to limit campaign donations or bar the anonymous spending of money on issue ads targeting a candidate and his voters in the final days of a campaign.

Fred Lewis of Campaigns for People, another Austin-based campaign finance group, said there's a lesson that state lawmakers should learn from the 527 example at the federal level:

"As Texas fixes its system, we have to apply the same rules to everybody."

Houston Chronicle: Despite criticism, DeLay undaunted

There was a day last month, as Congress wrapped up its work for the year, when House Majority Leader Tom DeLay showed what it is about him that infuriates his political opponents -- and also leaves them in awe.

Despite criticism, DeLay undaunted

Personal skills and powerful allies help keep him at top of House

By GEBE MARTINEZ, Houston Chronicle
Dec 19, 2004

WASHINGTON - There was a day last month, as Congress wrapped up its work for the year, when House Majority Leader Tom DeLay showed what it is about him that infuriates his political opponents _ and also leaves them in awe.

During a news conference that morning, DeLay, R-Sugar Land, managed to turn the scrutiny of an ethics investigation away from himself and toward his Democratic accuser, Rep. Chris Bell of Houston.

Ignoring his three recent admonishments by the House ethics committee regarding potential abuse of power, partly based on Bell's complaint, a defiant DeLay instead pointed to the panel's finding that Bell broke House rules by exaggerating some claims.

DeLay proclaimed himself exonerated and the victim of an attempt at political revenge. House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi of California called him "delusional."

By nightfall, he had moved on, scoring a major victory by squeezing out of resistant fellow lawmakers the $16.2 billion requested by the White House for NASA. How he got the money for a new part of his congressional district is testament to the backing he got from President Bush, his close alliance with House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., and his own legislative prowess, amplified by his position as the second-highest-ranking House Republican.

DeLay showed that day in November how he has been affected, or unaffected, by the ongoing questioning of his political activities.

He is neither humbled nor fighting for political survival. Just the opposite.

Rallying point

DeLay's battles with political opponents have become a cause for conservative House Republicans, who have solidified his position as majority leader.

A Travis County grand jury has been probing a campaign financing committee he created.

Republicans recently changed party rules, removing a requirement that would have forced DeLay to automatically give up his leadership post if he were indicted in Texas. DeLay and the GOP leadership also plan to change House rules in January to make it harder for members to file ethics complaints.

As the NASA issue proved, DeLay also remains a formidable legislator. As Congress and the White House begin crafting plans to overhaul Social Security, the tax code and immigration, DeLay will be at the critical center of those negotiations, advancing the principles of the party's core conservative base.

The White House is well aware of that.

A buzz recently swept through Washington when DeLay reportedly told Bush aides he prefers taking up tax code simplification before a Social Security overhaul, a reversal of the administration's priorities.

DeLay also backs a national retail sales tax in lieu of the income tax.

Still, even as DeLay maintains an air of invincibility as majority leader, many House Republicans said privately that the swirling questions about his political work are testing the limits of his influence.

They consider the chances of his being indicted remote, but some say the possibility has pierced DeLay's job security.

Also, unlike when he ran for majority leader, sewing up the job in a matter of hours, DeLay would have a tough race on his hands if he tries to follow Hastert as speaker, Republicans said.

"We are rich in talent," said Rep. Steve LaTourette, R-Ohio. "There will be a lot of wonderful candidates, and Tom DeLay will be one of them."

Redistricting questions

The main source of his latest political troubles _ his successful campaign to have Texas lawmakers redistrict the state's congressional seats for this year's election _ is also a huge reason DeLay is in good standing with House Republicans.

They are mindful that, had it not been for the resulting six-seat increase in the Texas GOP House delegation, the party would have suffered a net loss of House seats in the November election, Bush's popularity notwithstanding.

"People look at that as pulling a rabbit out of the hat," said House Appropriations subcommittee Chairman James Walsh, R-N.Y.

But the focus of the grand jury investigation in Austin is how redistricting came about. The use of corporate contributions to the state legislative campaigns of Republicans expected to back DeLay's redistricting plan is under scrutiny.

Three DeLay associates involved with the fund-raising effort have been indicted. DeLay has not been named as a target of the investigation, which continues under the staff of Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle, a Democrat.

The redistricting caused Bell to lose in the Democratic primary, and he later filed numerous charges against DeLay with the ethics committee, emphasizing allegations of improper campaign fund raising. The panel admonished DeLay on two counts, on top of another scolding it had issued in an unrelated case.

Many Republicans agree with DeLay's assertion that the investigations in Washington and Texas are mere political attacks by Democrats, fueled by a liberal media bias.

Earle is "an overly partisan prosecutor in a small town in Texas trying to bring down a leader," said Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz.

Earle has rejected the charge, pointing out that he has prosecuted Democrats and Republicans alike on charges of wrongdoing in office.

Still, the closed-door decision by Republicans to protect DeLay from a possible indictment was opposed by almost a fourth of the lawmakers, who argued the party was reversing an ethical standard it set 11 years ago when it gained control and promised to do better than Democrats.

DeLay should have thanked members for their support, then rejected the change and reminded them of the need to maintain their 1993 reforms, said Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., who voted no. "If he had done that, his stock would have soared."

The White House, meanwhile, distanced itself from the controversy.

Loyal supporters

As the only remaining member of the GOP leadership team that took control of the House in 1995 _ he served eight years as House whip before becoming majority leader two years ago _ DeLay stands out as the leader with the most loyal followers.

His allies credit his strategic political mind and a tough negotiating stance that earned him the nickname "The Hammer" with lawmakers and lobbyists.

Though his combative reputation can intimidate foes, House members point to a softer side that comes through in his dealings with them.

He studies members, knowing their likes and dislikes, whether they smoke, stay up late or have personal issues, and if they want to run for higher office, said Rep. Henry Bonilla, R-San Antonio. "Even if you are a high-maintenance member, he will stand there and look into your eyes. If he cannot help you, he will tell you why and look you in the face."

Moderates who do not always agree with him on policy praise his keen awareness of members' political needs. "He's working all the time, and he's always raising money for members," said Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va.

"You see him out there furthering the majority. One of the ways he does it is through political tactics. He's not breaking the law. He does it very legally. It's just creative work," said Rep. Jennifer Dunn, R-Wash., who is retiring this year.

But his creativity has courted controversy.

His fund-raising activities include the committee he created for the Texas races, his support for congressional Republicans, his nonprofit charity for foster children that can receive anonymous donations from corporations and individuals, and his legal defense fund, set up in 2000 to answer allegations of ethics violations.

His legal trust recently returned $3,500 in improper contributions in 2001 from two registered lobbyists. The apparent violation was just discovered by a public interest group.

In his legislative work, DeLay already has shown his ability to mesh the White House's policy goals with those of the House conservatives who keep him in power.

When the House took up major Medicare changes in 2003, DeLay encouraged fiscal conservatives to hold out for a law that would give private health insurance companies the incentive to compete for Medicare dollars.

Then, when the day came to pass the bill, which did not fully satisfy the conservatives, he scrambled with the rest of the leadership to find the votes.

The House passed the bill by one vote after some controversial arm-twisting by DeLay and other House leaders.

Lawmakers also noted DeLay's deftness when House leaders called for a vote on an intelligence overhaul bill recommended by the Sept. 11 commission _ a measure Bush pushed at the end despite conservative opposition.

"He said, 'I'm for this. But ... ,' " recalled Rep. Zach Wamp, R-Tenn. "His job inherently says he has to move the legislation, so he's dancing around."

Once the House passed the bill, DeLay publicly reaffirmed lawmakers would vote early next year on immigration provisions that conservatives failed to get into the intelligence bill.

"We're in the majority. We can fix these things," DeLay said confidently.

White House issues

DeLay is seen as working more closely with Vice President Dick Cheney than with the president, as the White House clearly relies on him and Hastert to move its legislation.

Sometimes, DeLay will drive an issue before the president is ready.

He was ahead of the administration in making public pronouncements in 2002 on going to war with Iraq, and he has nudged Bush into a more aggressive defense of Israel.

DeLay recently objected to the White House's decision to send $20 million in direct aid to the Palestinian Authority after Yasser Arafat's death.

The administration viewed the aid as its commitment to peace in the Middle East, but DeLay wanted the Palestinians to first show signs of reforms.

Usually, what DeLay wants, he gets, as the NASA issue proved.

Last summer, when House appropriators cut NASA's proposed spending by $1.1 billion, DeLay met with Bush.

If the president was serious about his ambitious space exploration plan, which had wavering support on Capitol Hill, now was the time to show it, DeLay said.

Within hours, the White House sent a letter to lawmakers, threatening a veto of the spending bill if NASA's funding fell short.

Then in November, with the backing of the president and Hastert, DeLay vowed to hold up a mammoth $388 billion appropriations bill and Congress' adjournment for the year if NASA did not get its money.

House and Senate negotiators came through by ordering across-the-board spending cuts in most government agencies.

Walsh, the chairman of the Appropriations subcommittee overseeing NASA, said the agency was virtually the only one to get extra funds at the last minute, "because of the help of Tom."

Next year, when the House votes on a national retail tax, a balanced budget amendment and other pet projects of House Republicans, DeLay will get the credit, said Rep. John Culberson, R-Houston.

"He's going to stay majority leader as long as he wants to be majority leader."

Lobby Watch: Austin Jockey Club Track Marks Now Lead To Governor Perry's Personal Realtor and Personal Lobbyist!

Seeking a controversial racetrack permit from gubernatorial appointees to the Texas Racing Commission, the Austin Jockey Club (AJC) upgraded its bloodline last June—recruiting new partners with close ties to the governor.
Read the Lobby Watch

Dallas Morning News: Corporation dropped from political contribution case

The Travis County district attorney has dismissed the indictment against one of the eight corporations charged with making illegal political contributions in the 2002 Texas House campaign. Charges against Diversified Collection Services were dropped Thursday in exchange for the San Leandro, Calif., debt-collection company agreeing to shun political contributions in Texas, cooperate with the prosecution and financially support a public program on the role of corporations in democracy.

Corporation dropped from political contribution case

Deal calls for funding program on companies' role in democracy

By CHRISTY HOPPE, Dallas Morning News
December 10, 2004

The Travis County district attorney has dismissed the indictment against one of the eight corporations charged with making illegal political contributions in the 2002 Texas House campaign.

Charges against Diversified Collection Services were dropped Thursday in exchange for the San Leandro, Calif., debt-collection company agreeing to shun political contributions in Texas, cooperate with the prosecution and financially support a public program on the role of corporations in democracy.

The company was among the businesses indicted in September for giving thousands of dollars to the Texans for a Republican Majority political action committee, known as TRMPAC.

It is illegal in Texas for corporate or union money to be used in political campaigns. Officials from TRMPAC, which was started with the help of House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, also were indicted.

In the 2002 campaign, TRMPAC raised about $600,000 in corporate contributions, with much of it being spent on pollsters, phone banks, fund-raisers and political consultants. The group sought to ensure a GOP majority in the Texas House.

With 15 victories among the 23 House races targeted, Republicans won control, were able to elect Tom Craddick as speaker and pushed a congressional redistricting plan that toppled the last bastion of Democratic strength in Texas.

Under the newly drawn map, six Democratic U.S. House members were unseated this year, giving the GOP a majority in the state's congressional delegation.

The Thursday agreement to dismiss charges against Diversified Collection outlined that the company made one contribution $50,000 on June 7, 2002 based on "false and misleading information provided by the fund-raiser that solicited the contribution."

It also points out the company would suffer, possibly losing federal contracts and leading to company layoffs, if the prosecution continued.

Part of the agreement, in keeping with District Attorney Ronnie Earle's frequent critique that large infusions of corporate money corrupts the political process, states: "Defendant further acknowledges that the basis for the Texas prohibition against corporate contributions is that they constitute a genuine threat to democracy."

Special prosecutor Gregg Cox said that his office considers the settlement, "a major step forward, particularly the public education part."

He said details of how the educational program would work are still being discussed.

He declined to comment on whether other companies or defendants also were negotiating settlements. The seven other companies still charged are Questerra Corp.; Westar Energy Inc; Sears, Roebuck & Co.; The Williams Companies Inc.; Bacardi USA; Cracker Barrel Old Country Store and The Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care Corp.

Jon Shaver, vice president of Diversified Collections, said he and the company are pleased with the settlement.

Much of what was agreed to is now standing company policy, he said. The firm changed hands in January 2004 and no longer makes political contributions, he said.

"We think our civic contribution will be in the area of increasing public understanding in the area of corporations in American political life," Mr. Shaver said.

Craig McDonald, executive director of campaign reform group Texans for Public Justice, said he thought the settlement was a strong step forward and "a welcomed admission of wrongdoing."

Dallas Morning News: The big view of DA Earle

In the nearly three decades Ronnie Earle has been district attorney in Travis County, his portfolio has been clear: prosecute criminals and politicians. "The two aren't mutually exclusive," he said with a brief, wry smile. His latest high-profile case has House Majority Leader Tom Delay and other Republicans denouncing him as a Democratic partisan from the liberal haunts of Austin. But Mr. Earle says he's politically agnostic.

The big view of DA Earle

Prosecutor says he sees no party lines, just the fate of democracy

By WAYNE SLATER / Dallas Morning News
Friday, December 3, 2004

AUSTIN--In the nearly three decades Ronnie Earle has been district attorney in Travis County, his portfolio has been clear: prosecute criminals and politicians.

"The two aren't mutually exclusive," he said with a brief, wry smile.

His latest high-profile case has House Majority Leader Tom Delay and other Republicans denouncing him as a Democratic partisan from the liberal haunts of Austin. But Mr. Earle says he's politically agnostic.

In an interview at his office last week, the 62-year-old district attorney said his current investigation of corporate money in political campaigns might be the most important prosecution of his career.

"Democracy is at stake here," Mr. Earle said.

"If we allow corporations to control elections," he said, "we will destroy democracy. It will be the death knell of democracy."

His investigation has stirred powerful political forces in Austin and Washington. A Travis County grand jury has indicted three associates of Mr. DeLay, R-Sugar Land, and is investigating whether illegal corporate money was laundered by political-action committees with ties to top Republicans, including Texas House Speaker Tom Craddick.

Political observers describe Mr. Earle as tough and independent, a solitary figure whose introduction to hardball started at Birdville High School, where he played linebacker so ferociously he broke two fingers that remain bent and paralyzed.

Democrats, including some who have found themselves in Mr. Earle's cross hairs, say he's more idealist than ideologue, less vengeful partisan than Hill Country Quixote.

He once even filed misdemeanor charges against himself and paid a $200 fine after learning his campaign had failed to file required contribution reports.

"He's not pressurable," said Glenn Smith, a political consultant hired by Democrat state House Speaker Gib Lewis when Mr. Earle successfully prosecuted him for violating ethics laws in the early 1990s.

"He doesn't care who's for what he's doing and who's against what he's doing. He knows what's right and goes after it," said Mr. Smith, a Democrat. "They make a big mistake underestimating him."

But Republicans see Mr. Earle's latest prosecution is politics pure and simple. Rep. Henry Bonilla, R-San Antonio, called him "a partisan crackpot," and Mr. DeLay denounced him as "a runaway district attorney."

Last month, Republicans in Congress rushed to protect Mr. DeLay by repealing a rule requiring that leaders relinquish leadership positions if indicted.

Mr. Earle fired back with an opinion column in The New York Times saying the House GOP had betrayed "moral values and ethical behavior" by changing the rules to protect their leaders.

Sitting in his office, Mr. Earle acknowledged that he has become the bane of red-meat Republican circles from Texas to Washington.

"What else are they going to say?" he said.

Over his 27-year career, Mr. Earle has prosecuted 12 Democratic officeholders and four Republicans.

He brought down a state treasurer, a House speaker, a state Supreme Court justice and several legislators – all Democrats.

But he has also lost some big cases. His highest-profile Republican loss came in 1994, when U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison was exonerated of ethics charges, a case the GOP calls a frivolous prosecution that proves what it sees as partisan motives.

In the current case, a succession of grand juries over the last two years have examined more than $2 million in corporate money spent in 2002 to elect GOP legislative candidates who, in turn, made Mr. Craddick the first Republican House speaker since Reconstruction and redrew congressional boundaries to give Mr. DeLay an additional six Republicans in Congress.

In addition to indicting three DeLay lieutenants, the ongoing grand jury has charged eight out-of-state corporations and has issued scores of subpoenas for legislators, political operatives, officials of state's largest business group and the Republican governor's former chief of staff.

The theme of corporate money in politics animates Mr. Earle. In court once, he cited Mussolini comparing fascism to "corporatism," the merger of the state and corporate power.

"The reason corporations and labor unions are not allowed to give money to campaigns is because they are not individual people. They are things," he said. "And to allow things to control elections makes a mockery of government by the people."

From the window of his corner office, Mr. Earle can see the green and undulant rise of the Texas Hill Country.

There is a ceramic boot in one window, a spur in the other and a framed editorial cartoon in which his enemies, who have accused him of conducting a witch hunt in the current case, are themselves dressed in black cloaks and pointed hats.

Mr. Earle said he had planned to retire and spend more time with his wife, Twila, on the small ranch where they moved in the early 1980s and raised organic vegetables to sell at the Farmers Market. When the current case crossed his desk, he put off his retirement plans.

Raised on a ranch northeast of Fort Worth, he graduated from the University of Texas Law School, worked for Gov. John Connally, served as a Democrat in the Texas Legislature and, in 1976, was elected district attorney. He has won re-election since then, sometimes without drawing a Republican opponent.

The Austin where he politically came of age has long been a liberal, if eclectic, place. The Armadillo World Headquarters, a 1970s concert hall that synthesized redneck and hippie cultures, flourished here. The city council still opens its meetings with live music.

This year, while Texas voted overwhelmingly to re-elect favorite son George W. Bush as president, Travis County went 56 percent for Democrat John Kerry. A popular bumper sticker says, "Keep Austin Weird."

As a prosecutor, Mr. Earle has pursued a balance between the conservative requirements of law enforcement (he supports the death penalty) and the community's more moderate instincts. (He and Twila taught a course at the University of Texas entitled, "Reweaving the Fabric of Community.")

In a 1996 book, two scholars cite Mr. Earle's support of community involvement as part of what they call the "broken window" theory of combating crime.

"Basically, it says a broken window left unfixed leads to more and more serious crime," said Mr. Earle.

"We don't have just any broken windows here," he said of the current case. "These are broken portals of democracy. So it's important to public confidence in our sacred institutions that somebody mark that and do something about it."

OFFICIAL INVESTIGATIONS
Some of the high-profile cases prosecuted by Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle:

In 1994, Mr. Earle took U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, a Republican, to trial in Fort Worth on charges of official misconduct and records tampering while she was state treasurer. At the opening of the trial, he refused to present any evidence, and she was acquitted. Mr. Earle later said he wouldn't go forward because he didn't think he would be allowed to offer critical evidence.

In 1992, Texas House Speaker Gib Lewis, D-Fort Worth, pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor ethics charge and was fined $2,000 as part of a plea bargain.

In 1985, Attorney General Jim Mattox, a Democrat, was acquitted of a felony bribery charge brought by Mr. Earle's office.

In 1978, Mr. Earle obtained a felony perjury conviction of state Supreme Court Justice Don Yarbrough, a Democrat.