Doug Hampton

No Signs Doug Hampton Working With Feds On John Ensign Case

Ryan J. Reilly | January 13, 2012, 3:26PM

Former John Ensign aide Doug Hampton is now one step closer to going on trial on charges he broke an anti-revolving door lobbying law.

Hampton appeared at a pre-trial hearing in Washington, D.C. on Friday, his trip provided by the U.S. Marshals Service because he was financially unable to pay his own way, according to court records. He's due back in court on Sept. 5, with a trial likely in the fall.

Hampton's role in the Ensign debacle is at this point well know. He left Ensign's office in 2008 after learning the Senator had carried on an affair with his wife Cynthia Hampton. Hampton allegedly soon started lobbying Ensign's office in violation of the law. A Senate Ethics Committee report found there was "Substantial Credible Evidence That Senator Ensign Conspired to Violate, and Aided and Abetted" Hampton's alleged violations of the ban. Ensign resigned in April, just before the report was released.

Read more »

John Ensign

John Edwards Defense Strategy: But What About John Ensign?

Ryan J. Reilly | October 27, 2011, 6:00AM

John Edwards

Lawyers for former Democratic presidential candidate and Senator John Edwards have a question for the Justice Department officials prosecuting his case: what ever happened with that whole John Ensign thing?

Read more »

John Edwards

With Reports Of An Imminent Indictment, John Edwards' Attorney Issues Defiant Statement

Susan Crabtree | May 25, 2011, 6:20PM

Rielle Hunter with her baby, and John Edwards

After reports that Sen. John Edwards (D-NC) is on the verge of being indicted for using campaign funds to cover-up an extramarital affair, his attorney Wednesday issued a defiant statement impugning the legal underpinnings of the government's case.

The statement suggests that Edwards, a onetime presidential contender, is either taking a firm stand in plea negotiations or outright fighting the charges and will opt for a trial instead of agreeing to plead guilty for a lesser charge.

Read more »

John Ensign

FEC Official On Ensign 'Gift' Of $96K: 'Maybe We Should Not Be So Trusting'

Ryan J. Reilly | May 16, 2011, 1:45PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

A Federal Elections Commission official told the New York Times that the commission took former Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) at his word when he told them the $96,000 payment his parents gave to his mistress and her husband was a "gift" and not "severance," which would have made it illegal.

Read more »

John Ensign

Tom Coburn Denies Negotiating Cash Payout For John Ensign's Mistress And Her Husband

Ryan J. Reilly | May 13, 2011, 3:15PM

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK)

If the Senate Ethics Committee's report on the ethics scandals of former Sen. John Ensign were a movie, the Nevada Republican would no doubt be the star -- but Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) would get second billing.

Read more »

John Lopez

John Ensign Chief Of Staff John Lopez Granted Immunity

Ryan J. Reilly | May 13, 2011, 11:15AM

Former Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

John Lopez, the former chief of staff to Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) who was a key witness in the case against Ensign compiled by the Senate Ethics Committee and its special counsel, agreed to cooperate with the investigation only after the Justice Department granted him immunity from prosecution.

Read more »

Doug Hampton

The Ensign-Hampton Affair: Text Messages, Prayer Breakfast And Yahoo Addresses

Ryan J. Reilly | May 13, 2011, 8:24AM

Former Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

She was listed in his phone under "Aunt Judy." He told her he wanted to marry her at the National Prayer Breakfast. There were secret cell phones which the two used to exchange text messages at a rate of nearly 20 per day. And after her husband spotted the lovers' cars outside a hotel in Nevada, his long-time spiritual adviser called and told him to "put your pants on and go home."

Read more »

John Ensign

Ensign Called Parents' Payment To Lover 'Severance' Until Lawyer Told Him Not To

Ryan J. Reilly | May 12, 2011, 4:35PM

If you asked former Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) about that $96,000 his parents gave to his mistress and her husband, he would say it wasn't a form of severance, it was simply a generous gift. But that wasn't what he called it originally.

The Senate Ethics Committee's report on Ensign's ethics violations reveals that Ensign himself called the $96,000 payout a "severance" in a draft version of his 2009 statement on his affair until his lawyer told him that wasn't such a good idea.

Read more »

John Ensign

Point By Point: Senate Ethics Committee's Findings In John Ensign Case

Ryan J. Reilly | May 12, 2011, 3:30PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

The Senate Ethic Committee's report on former Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) makes several findings about the Nevada Republican's affair with the wife of his former chief of staff.

Read more »

John Ensign

Reid: Ethics Committee Is 'Obligated' To Issue Ensign Report

Susan Crabtree | April 27, 2011, 4:31PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) was traveling on an official trip to China last week when his scandal-scarred Nevada GOP colleague, John Ensign, announced his resignation so he hasn't had a chance to comment until now.

Reid told reporters on a conference call Wednesday that he thinks the Senate Ethics Committee will issue a final report on the charges surrounding Ensign's affair with a top staffer's wife and the creative steps he took to keep it quiet.

In fact, he said, the panel doesn't have a choice.

"They are obligated to come up with a report," he said, noting that he had previously served as chairman of the ethics panel for many years.

Read more »

John Ensign

Ensign Still On The Ethics Hook After Resigning

Susan Crabtree | April 22, 2011, 3:47PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

Scandal-scarred Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) may have hoped resigning would keep quiet unsavory details and new charges surrounding his affair with a top staffer's wife, but he's not off the hook yet.

The Senate Ethics Committee issued a rare statement Friday signaling it would continue its investigation of Ensign's affair and steps he took to keep it quiet despite having formally resigned his Senate seat. Sens. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Johnny Isakson (R-GA), the top Democrat and Republican on the panel respectively, said his resignation is "appropriate" and indicated they would wrap up work on the probe as soon as possible.

"The Senate Ethics Committee has worked diligently for nearly 22 months on this matter and will complete its work in a timely fashion," they said in the statement.

Read more »

John Ensign

Former Ensign Love Triangle Aide Indicted For Post-Senate Lobbying

Susan Crabtree | March 24, 2011, 6:06PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

Federal prosecutors have charged the husband of Sen. John Ensign's (R-NV) former mistress with breaking criminal revolving-door lobbying laws.

The indictment, issued Thursday afternoon, charges Doug Hampton, a former top aide to Ensign, with seven counts of violating conflict-of-interest laws, according to a Justice Department release.

Read more »

John Ensign

Watchdogs to Ethics Panel: Keep Pursuing Ensign Hush Money Case

Susan Crabtree | March 8, 2011, 8:43AM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

Watchdogs are calling on the Senate Ethics Committee to continue digging into the hush money case against Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) despite his decision not to run for reelection.

The Ethics Committee last month announced the appointment a special prosecutor to lead the investigation into activities surrounding Ensign's affair with a political staffer because the panel was finding it too difficult to pursue the case. But ethics committees don't have jurisdiction over senators and members once they leave the House and Senate, and often the panels decide to drop their cases against lawmakers who announce their retirements and are heading out the door.

Read more »

John Ensign

Why Can't Congress Police Itself? Ensign Case is Exhibit A

Susan Crabtree | February 3, 2011, 8:30AM

The Senate Ethics Committee's decision to appoint a special counsel to lead the investigation into activities surrounding Sen. John Ensign's (R-NV) affair with a political staffer is raising age-old questions about the panel's relevancy.

Members of Congress are the first to admit that they hate serving on the Ethics Committee, and policing their peers puts them in an unusually awkward position. If that's the case and the panel has to farm out its work to true professional investigators, then why have lawmakers investigating their colleagues misbehavior in the first place?

Read more »

John Ensign

Senate Ethics Committee Moves Forward In Ensign Investigation

Rachel Slajda | February 1, 2011, 10:32AM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

The Senate Ethics Committee has appointed a special counsel to handle the committee's preliminary investigation into Sen. John Ensign (R-NV).

The committee announced today that it has hired Carol Elder Bruce, a partner at K&L Gates LLP. Bruce will lead the investigation into whether Ensign broke Senate rules and/or federal law.

Read more »

John Ensign

What John Ensign Wants Out Of Obama's State Of The Union

Ryan J. Reilly | January 25, 2011, 8:47PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

President Barack Obama shouldn't take anything off the table when it comes to cutting money out of the federal budget, Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) told TPM ahead of President Barack Obama's State of the Union address on Tuesday night.

"We have the opportunity for neither party to get blamed for these tough political votes which are going to be necessary to cut spending," Ensign said. "This president has exactly what he needs to do what's right for the country, so I hope he wakes up and does what he needs to."

"It's going to be tough political votes, no question. We have to work together," Ensign said. "I don't think you can take anything off the table. I'm one of those Republicans who thinks there's a lot of waste in the defense budget."

Read more »

John Ensign

In Interview About Giffords, Ensign Recounts 1996 Shooting At Reid's Office

Rachel Slajda | January 15, 2011, 9:29AM

Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) and Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

In a local TV interview that touched on the Tucson shootings, Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) recounted threats that have been made to his office -- specifically, one incident in which a man shot himself outside of Sen. Harry Reid's (D-NV) Las Vegas office in 1996.

"Sen. Reid and I actually had a stalker or whatever you want to call him," Ensign told Fox 5. "He left very blood-curdling -- almost threats -- on our phones. He ended up shooting himself in front of both of our offices."

Here's what happened, according to contemporary news reports: In 1995, when Ensign was a congressman, a man named Michael McCusker starting calling Ensign's office. He wanted help, he said, getting back $23,000 he lost in a Mexican land scam. When Ensign's staff found they couldn't help him, McCusker continued calling the office. He eventually came in and handed staffers a note that said "Justice or Death" and claimed he had a gun.

Read more »

John Ensign

FEC Ignored Its General Counsel In Letting Ensign Off The Hook

Rachel Slajda | December 21, 2010, 9:44AM

Former Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

When the Federal Election Commission decided in November to close a complaint against Sen. John Ensign (R-NV), it ignored the recommendation of its general counsel.

According to just-released documents, in March the general counsel -- a non-partisan office of the FEC -- found that there was "reason to believe" that Ensign's parents had broken campaign finance law by giving the family of Ensign's former mistress and staffer $96,000 in April 2008.

That means the general counsel believed that a further investigation was warranted. In November, the full commission, which is made up of partisan commissioners, declined to do a further investigation and closed the matter. The FEC is not bound to follow the recommendations of its general counsel.

You can read the general counsel's report here (PDF).

Read more »

Lanny Breuer

DOJ: We're Not 'Gun-Shy' On Prosecuting Politicians, We Just Can't Prove Crimes

Ryan J. Reilly | December 21, 2010, 9:01AM

Lanny Breuer

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV). Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-CA). Former Rep. Tom DeLay (R-TX). Rep. Don Young (R-AK). Rep. Alan Mollohan (D-WV). What do all these politicians have in common? Despite being embroiled in scandal, all have announced in the past year that the Justice Department wouldn't be pursuing charges against them.

That has put DOJ in the crosshairs of good government groups, who say they've appeared weak by shutting down high-profile investigations of members of Congress.

"Exactly what will a politician have to do for the Department of Justice to sit up and take notice?" Melanie Sloan, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), said this month. "The department might as well disband the Public Integrity Section for all the good it does."

Read more »

John Ensign

Ensign Says DOJ Has Dropped Investigation

Rachel Slajda | December 1, 2010, 3:46PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

The Department of Justice has dropped its investigation of Sen. John Ensign (R-NV), Ensign's office announced today.

"Senator Ensign is certainly pleased that the Department of Justice no longer views him as a target in their investigation, and has long-stated that he acted in accordance with the law," his spokeswoman said in a statement. "Our office and the Senator have been cooperative with this investigation, and it's important that the truth in this matter is finally coming to light. It is the Senator's hope that the Ethics Committee soon follows suit."

Read more »

John Ensign

FEC Dismisses Complaint Against Ensign For Parents' Payment To Mistress

Rachel Slajda | November 19, 2010, 5:34PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

The Federal Elections Commission has dismissed a complaint against Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) that alleged that he made an illegal contribution to his own campaign when his parents gave his former mistress and staffer -- and her family -- $96,000.

The complaint, brought by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, claimed that the payment counted as severance and, as such, was an in-kind contribution to Ensign's political committees for which the woman worked.

Read more »

C Street

Details On C-Street's Midnight Intervention For Ensign

Rachel Slajda | September 6, 2010, 9:44AM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

When Sen. John Ensign's housemates on C Street found out about his affair with the wife of an aide, they burst into his room and woke him up to stage an intervention.

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), a fellow C-streeter, had found out about the affair weeks earlier and confronted Ensign, according to the New Yorker, which is out with a long story about Ensign (R-NV), the C-Street House, and the Fellowship.

Read more »

John Ensign

Read Ensign's Legal Defense Fundraising Letter

Rachel Slajda | August 13, 2010, 5:04PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) has begun soliciting contributions for his legal defense fund.

Ensign established the fund in June and then took the unusual step of registering it as a political organization.

In the letter, he writes, "As I am sure you are aware, I admitted last year to making the worst mistake of my life."

Read more »

John Ensign

Ensign Registers Legal Defense Fund As Political Org

Rachel Slajda | August 3, 2010, 5:53PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

Roll Call reports today that Sen. John Ensign has registered his legal defense fund as a 527 political organization.

A 527 is tax-exempt, but Ensign must report contributions to the IRS.

As Roll Call notes, it's an unusual move:

Read more »

John Ensign

Ensign Staffers Allowed To Testify Before Grand Jury

Rachel Slajda | July 30, 2010, 5:20PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

Staffers for Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) are expected to testify before a grand jury on their boss's sex-and-lobbying scandal.

The Senate this week approved a resolution allowing the staffers to speak to the grand jury. Senate employees are normally prohibited from testifying outside of Congress.

Ensign's staff has reportedly already been speaking to the Senate ethics committee, and Ensign's campaign is paying for several of their related legal bills.

Read more »

John Ensign

Coburn Turns Over Emails To Feds Investigating Ensign Scandal

Ben Frumin | July 23, 2010, 5:29PM

Senator Tom Coburn, M.D. (R-OK) and Senator John Ensign (R-NV)

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) -- who acknowledged last year that he acted as an "intermediary" between Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) and Doug Hampton, the man with whose wife the Nevada senator had an affair -- has turned over emails to the feds who are investigating Ensign's affair, Politico reports.

Coburn and Ensign were roommates at a Christian house on C Street at the time of the affair.

Coburn didn't tell Politico what's contained in the emails -- but said "there weren't many."

Read more »

John Ensign

Ensign Is Paying Staffers' Legal Bills

Rachel Slajda | July 16, 2010, 9:18AM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) is paying the legal bills of some of his staff as they face questioning over Ensign's sex-and-lobbying scandal.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports today that the payments to law firms are listed on Ensign's campaign's latest FEC reports. Questioned about the payments, Ensign's spokeswoman confirmed that they were for staff members.

"Senator Ensign's campaign is paying for the legal bills accrued by staff as a result of cooperating with the ongoing ethics investigation," spokeswoman Jennifer Cooper told the Review-Journal.

Read more »

John Ensign

Report: Staffers Tell Ethics Panel Ensign Knew He Was Breaking Lobbying Ban

Rachel Slajda | June 23, 2010, 9:47AM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

The Hill reports that staffers for Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) have told the Senate Ethics Committee that their boss knew he was breaking a one-year lobbying ban when he helped a former staffer set himself up as a lobbyist.

In depositions to the committee, Ensign's staffers said several aides openly discussed helping to get lobbying gigs for former staffer Doug Hampton, after Ensign had an affair with Hampton's wife. The aides also discussed that such help apparently violated a one-year ban on Congressional staffers moving to K Street, sources close to the investigation told The Hill.

Read more »

Financial Disclosures

Personal Financial Information Of Members Of Congress Released

Justin Elliott | June 17, 2010, 11:35AM

Personal financial disclosure forms from members of Congress, showing assets and other information as of the end of last year, are now available for perusal.

There are lots of fun tidbits. For example, Sen. John Ensign's wife was paid $2,350 in salary by HairArts LLC of Las Vegas. Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY) got dividends from Pizza Hut (Yum! Brands).

Read more »

John Ensign

Ensign Establishes Fund To Help With His Legal Bills

Eric Lach | June 2, 2010, 6:40PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

Have you been itching to help Sen. John Ensign pay his legal expenses? You're in luck.

Read more »

John Ensign

Mulling Re-Election Bid Despite Scandal, Ensign Gears Up Fundraising

Zachary Roth | May 27, 2010, 4:06PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

After everything that's come out about Sen. John Ensign (R-NV), it seems implausible that he could run for office again. But he may be thinking about doing just that.

The Nevada Republican has been planning fundraisers and making calls to donors, with a view to a possible re-election bid in 2012, reports the Los Angeles Times.

Read more »

John Ensign

What Happens In Vegas: Senate Investigators Interview Witnesses In Ensign Probe

Zachary Roth | May 7, 2010, 9:31AM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

The Senate Ethics committee's investigation of the John Ensign sex-and-lobbying scandal is in full swing.

Investigators for the panel were holed up in a Las Vegas hotel yesterday, where they interviewed several key figures in the case, KLAS-TV reports. A woman "who looks just like" Cynthia Hampton, Ensign's former mistress, was seen entering the hotel, accompanied by her husband's lawyer, Dan Albregts, says the station. She stayed for two hours.

Read more »

Bertha Lewis

Muckraker Favorites Star On Time's Least Influential List

Zachary Roth | April 30, 2010, 2:55PM

Clockwise from top-left: Former lobbyist Jack Abramoff, South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, Sen. John Ensign (R-NV), and former AIG Financial Products chief Joseph Cassano

Much more entertaining than Time's 100 Most Influential People list is its 100 Least Influential -- juvenilely titled the "Bum Hundred."

And that's only partly because it contains a handful of TPMmuckraker favorites. For instance:

Read more »

John Ensign

Ensign's PAC Has Not Raised A Single Dollar This Year

Zachary Roth | April 21, 2010, 1:13PM

Former Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

We already told you that Sen. John Ensign's campaign has raised only $50 -- all from one contributor -- this year. But his political action committee is doing even worse.

The Nevada Republican's Battle Born PAC has taken in a grand total of $0 so far this year, according to FEC records examined by TPMmuckraker. By comparison, the PAC for Ensign's fellow conservative GOP senator, Jon Kyl of Arizona, has raised $38,000 in 2010, records show. Both men would face re-election in 2012.

Read more »

John Ensign

Sole Ensign Donor: 'All Men Are Dogs'

Zachary Roth | April 21, 2010, 11:49AM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

The only person to contribute to Sen. John Ensign's re-election campaign this year says he thinks the scandal-plagued lawmaker is "a really good guy."

"He did some bad things with his personal life," Robert Donald, a Las Vegas retiree, told TPMmuckraker. "But as a senator, he's doing the right thing. He votes the right way."

Read more »

John Ensign

Ensign Campaign's Haul Last Quarter: 50 Bucks

Zachary Roth | April 21, 2010, 9:40AM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

Sen. John Ensign's re-election campaign took in just $50 in contributions, from one contributor, during the first quarter of 2010, according to FEC reports. The paltry take comes as more bad news for the scandal-tarred Nevada Republican, who would run for re-election in 2012.

Disclosure reports examined by TPMmuckraker show that Robert Donald, a Las Vegas retiree, was the sole contributor to the "Ensign for Senate" committee between January and March. Donald gave two separate $25 contributions.

Read more »

John Ensign

Associates Dish On Ensign's 'Selfishness and Arrogance'

Zachary Roth | April 5, 2010, 4:53PM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

The Las Vegas Sun has taken a deep-dive look into the reputation that Sen. John Ensign enjoys among those who know him -- and come back with some pretty damning testimony.

Reports the paper:

In interviews with the Las Vegas Sun, more than a dozen friends, associates and Republican allies, some of whom have known Ensign for years, describe him as a politician who has grown narcissistic and reckless -- a detached, self-righteous figure with almost no regard for those who helped send him to Washington or keep him there.

Read more »

John Ensign

Report: Probe Focused On Whether Ensign Deliberately Evaded Reporting Rules

Zachary Roth | April 5, 2010, 9:25AM

Former Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

The federal probe into Sen. John Ensign's sex and lobbying scandal is said to be focused on whether the Nevada senator structured financial transactions in order to evade reporting requirements. That's according to "a reliable source familiar with the deliberations occurring inside the Justice Department," reports Jon Ralston of the Las Vegas Sun.

Ralston's report suggests that the $96,000 payment from Ensign's parents to the Hamptons -- which was called a gift, but appears to have been an unreported severance payment from the senator -- may have run afoul of "structuring" laws. If that's accurate, it raises another question: could Ensign have dragged his mother and father -- a wealthy and well-connected casino entrepreneur -- into legal jeopardy with him?

Read more »

John Ensign

New Ensign Details: 'If You Want John Ensign To Work With You, You Have Got To Hire Doug Hampton'

Zachary Roth | April 2, 2010, 10:00AM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

More details have emerged about the actions of Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) in the aftermath of his 2008 affair with a top aide's wife -- already the subject of a heated federal probe.

The senator tried to help a Nevada energy company at the same time that he was urging the company to hire the aide, Doug Hampton, reports the New York Times. That suggests Ensign may have been trying to curry favor with the company in order to get it to agree to hire Hampton. Ensign was desperate to find a job for Hampton at the time, after his affair with Hampton's wife led to the end of Hampton's tenure in Ensign's office.

Read more »

C Street

Ohio Pastors File IRS Complaints Over C Street House

Rachel Slajda | April 1, 2010, 9:58AM

C Street House

The C Street Center, a boarding house for Christian lawmakers made famous by its role in the Ensign and Sanford scandals, is facing two complaints from a group of Ohio pastors. The pastors allege that the center is improperly using its tax status to offer below-market rents to members of Congress -- a charge that could ensnare the members as well.

The 13 pastors, who say they're concerned about the separation of church and state, filed one complaint with the IRS arguing that C Street has improperly declared itself a "church" for taxation purposes on February 23. Their second IRS complaint, filed this week and obtained by TPM, alleges that C Street's rent is much lower than market price. The problem, according to the complaint, is that the members are either not paying taxes on that extra income, or that they're receiving unreported gifts.

Read more »