--- Date: Sun, 22 Jun 2003 18:35:29 -0700 From: james sanchez <seattleplatypusat_private> Subject: Where this all this money come from? I don't remember... (Maybe it should be called Homeland $ecurity... $52,000 and counting... ) [abstract] ===== Pfleger, Katherine. "Homeland Security Creates New Breed of Contributors", in Seattle Times, June 22, 2003. pp. B1, B6. Sen. Patty Murray has been cashing in on homeland security by collecting large campaign contributions linked to measures she has supported for homeland security. Murray pushed through $58 million in funding for Operation Safe Commerce, a program to screen containers entering the US. One beneficiary of the contract, California-based Savi Technology, in turn donated $15000 to Murray's re-election campaign through a Bay area fundraiser for Murray. The payment came one month after Murray held a press conference to praise the firm. Operation Safe Commerce will improve security associated with container inflows at three ports: Los Angeles-Long Beach, New York-New Jersey, and Seattle-Tacoma. However, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) took nine months to determine who would receive funding under the program: Murray's 7/2002 press conference criticized the agency for delays even as she promoted Savi Technology; in 2/2003, Murray headlined a media event at the Port of Seattle and again promoted Savi. TSA contracts include a $3.4 million program by Science Applications International to secure containers from Thailand to Tacoma for Canadian Tire Ltd.; Savi Technology will be a key subcontractor in that program ($0.5-1.0 million). Savi is also competing for participation in 30 other projects, through its dozens of partnerships with other firms and existing operations in 15 ports, including the Port of Seattle. After the 7/2003 event, Murray met with Savi CEO Vic Varna and board member Alex Slusky, also a managing pattner at Vector Capital. Other Savi board members and venture capitalists also attended the meeting. At the meeting, Murray pocketed a $1000 check from Qualcomm, a technology partner of Savi. (During the 2002 election cycle, Qualcomm provided $25000 to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which Murray headed.) Blair LaCorte, Savi EVP for business development, missed the meeting but hastily passed a $1000 check to Murray. Savi also hired McBee Strategic Consulting as a lobbyist: its CEO, Steve McBee, is a former aide to Rep. Norm Dicks and Sen. Maria Cantwell. Sen. Murray cannot remember anything about meetings with Savi or about the checks she received from Savi and its representatives. Murray also stated she could not recall the $25000 contribution by Qualcomm to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. ===== ------------------------------------------------------------------------- POLITECH -- Declan McCullagh's politics and technology mailing list You may redistribute this message freely if you include this notice. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- To subscribe to Politech: http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html This message is archived at http://www.politechbot.com/ Declan McCullagh's photographs are at http://www.mccullagh.org/ Like Politech? Make a donation here: http://www.politechbot.com/donate/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------
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