Don Young's (R. Alaska) legal fees surpass $1 million

http://www.adn.com/news/politics/fbi/young/story/377218.html

Rep. Young's legal fees surpass $1 million
INVESTIGATIONS: More campaign money is going out than coming in.

By ERIKA BOLSTAD
ebolstad@adn.com

Published: April 16th, 2008 01:23 AM
Last Modified: April 16th, 2008 10:49 AM

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Rep. Don Young has spent more than $1.1 million on lawyers who have helped fend off Justice Department investigations, according to a campaign spending report filed Tuesday with the Federal Election Commission. Young crossed the million-dollar threshold earlier this year, when his campaign wrote checks for $93,725 and $119,004 in legal fees to Washington, D.C., law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer and Feld. Young paid the legal bills from his campaign account even after he established a separate legal expense fund this winter to help pay for lawyers. He has until April 30 to disclose the activity in that account.

Young, a Republican who has held office since 1973, still won't say why he spends so much on lawyers or exactly what they are doing for him. Young, who held a combative news conference in February, said he wished he could speak his mind. He can't, he said in a statement released Tuesday, because "both the Department of Justice and my lawyers have asked that I not comment further on the investigation. I MUST honor this request," using capital letters for emphasis.

"Many people have been concerned about my legal fees and I do not take their concerns lightly," he added. "I have learned that the legal process is an expensive process, but I have nothing to hide. When it comes to my family and my character, the truth is priceless. That is exactly why I hired good legal counsel, and I have worked fully with the Department of Justice by answering their questions and providing them with anything they have requested."

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According to Anderson, who is also Young's chief of staff, the campaign decided to take a close look at past fundraising expenses after the 2006 election. One reason for the self-examination was the defeat in California of one of Young's closest Republican colleagues in the House, Richard Pombo. Anderson said Pombo was weakened by third-party attacks and Young's campaign officials wanted to guard against Young being similarly vulnerable in 2008.

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He's going DOWN....

(And this isn't HullBoss but his lovely wife Blue_in_AK whose mother board fried last night. :grr: )

:nopity:

:rofl:

If all goes well I intend on drinking a lot of champagne in 2009 even though I hate the stuff.

I want to see Ted gone, too, but not half as much as Don. Do you think Sean Parnell is going to give us any trouble? I thought the Dems would be a shoo-in until Parnell decided to get in. With Sarah so popular, he kind of worries me because you know she'll be campaigning for him.

name for himself by doing anything worth while like Sarah and if she does campaign for him most repugs can't stand her anyways. Look at the way lyda stares daggers at her when their together. I love it.

It cracks me up whenever someone like Dan Fagan calls her a "socialist." Which Dem are you supporting? I'm a Diane fan all the way, but Ethan would be fine, too. He's sure got the money rolling in from his lawyer friends, doesn't he?

I do respect what Diane did last election. It was very impressive.

or at least attend some function where she's speaking. She is really, really a great candidate, very knowledgeable on a lot of issues, wise, and "one of us." I'm inspired every time I'm around her.

it is unlikely to travel soon! Don has a lock on that record.
Why just last week at the CBC clubhouse, while trading some rezoning for political ads, I overheard, "Donny Boy, you own it!" :rofl: