NY Times Report On State AG Corruption Is Making Waves

The attorney general of Missouri, Democrat Chris Koster, may become the subject of a Missouri House of Representatives investigation, following his being prominently featured in a New York Times article about how state attorneys general are being lobbied and bankrolled by law firm lobbyists that are representing corporations. The Republican attorney general of Florida, Pam Bondi, also featured in the Times article, now is under fire from her Democratic party rival in the upcoming election. Both officials deny culpability. In Koster’s case, the allegation is that his office backed off on actions targeting the caffeinated drink 5-Hour Energy and the pharmaceutical company Phizer, as the result of lobbying and possible quid pro quos for campaign contributions. The Times investigation found smoking gun emails that were evidence of heavy lobbying, if not lobbying juiced with campaign contributions, in more than 20 state AG offices.