The coal industry lobbying group on whose behalf those forged letters were written has responded in part to a congressional inquiry about the matter — but won’t offer any details.
Roll Call reports (sub. req.) that the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity last night wrote to Rep. Ed Markey, who last week asked for answers from the group about the episode. But ACCCE wouldn’t make its letter public, nor would it say whether it had found any additional forged letters, beyond the ones already reported on.
The letters were sent by Bonner and Associates, a Washington lobbying firm that was working on behalf of ACCCE. They purported to be from local grassroots groups, and went to at least three Democratic members of Congress, urging them to oppose the climate change legislation that last month passed the House, and of which Markey was a lead sponsor.
Bonner has received its own letter from Markey’s office asking for answers. A spokesman for Markey told Roll Call that the congressman had gotten “some of the information we requested,” from Bonner, and that he expected to receive all of it from both Bonner and ACCCE.
The Sierra Club has formally petitioned the Justice Department to look into whether Bonner or ACCCE committed mail fraud, and Rep. Frank Pallone has also called for a criminal probe.
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