Washington – Former U.S. Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell’s lobbying firm says it will amend an official document indicating that Campbell had violated a one-year ban on lobbying his former colleagues.
“The report was filed in error,” said Kate Dando, a spokeswoman for Campbell and his firm, Holland & Knight. “He hadn’t lobbied” during the one-year period, she said.
Federal law bans former members of Congress from lobbying their ex-colleagues for a year after leaving office. Campbell left office in early January 2005 and so was banned from lobbying until early 2006.
Holland & Knight had filed reports with the clerk of the Senate indicating that Campbell, a former member of the Appropriations Committee, lobbied on federal appropriations for the PGA Tour and UAL Corp., the parent company of United Airlines, during the last six months of 2005.
But Dando said Friday that Campbell did no banned lobbying work during that period and the filing is erroneous.
Nevertheless, Gary Ruskin of the Congressional Accountability Project said the question bears investigating.
“When a lobbying firm files such a document, they’re swearing that it’s true,” Ruskin said. “The Justice Department should find out whether Ben Campbell violated the cooling- off period.”
The law does allow former lawmakers to offer advice to clients on how to deal with their former colleagues in their first year out of office.
