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Lewis support remains high |
It shows a brimming, steely blue man-made reservoir surrounded by pines in a greener, healthier time -- before drought and infestation set in, and before the catastrophic wildfires of 2003. It's a photo that makes Lewis proud. Related Articles: Related Articles: At 71, the Redlands Republican has spent years portraying himself as a defender of the nation's most urbanized mountain forest and its 100,000 residents. His congressional district, California's 41st, today comprises roughly 10,000 square miles of valleys, mountains and desert in the largest county in the contiguous United States. Home to 640,000 people in several fast-growing cities and sprawling rural communities, the region has reaped hundreds of millions in federal dollars thanks in part to Lewis' leadership. No wonder hometown support for Lewis remains high even as federal investigators probe ties between the powerful congressman, Washington lobbyists and local businesses and public agencies. Daniel Cozad, general manager of the Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority, described Lewis as "stalwart'' in his efforts to protect residents in the river's floodplain and to preserve the mountains that feed the river itself. "His support for (Santa Ana River) flood-control projects and for tree removal in the forests before and after the fires has been fundamental in protecting one of our region's most precious resources,'' Cozad said Thursday. "Jerry Lewis has clearly represented his district well, but he's also represented the region and the people who live downstream in Orange County.'' The watershed authority is one of more than two dozen government agencies and private businesses in San Bernardino and Riverside counties that have contracted in recent years with a lobbyisng firm that along with Lewis are at the center of a continuing federal probe.
Lewis' earmarks
Federal prosecutors are investigating Lewis' ties to the former firm of Copeland Lowery Jacquez Denton & White, led by Lewis' friend, former Rep. Bill Lowery, R-San Diego. The firm split up last month after several public agencies in San Bernardino County confirmed receiving subpoenas in connection with the federal investigation into its ties with Lewis. The probe stems in part from the bribery conviction of Lowery's successor, former Rep. Randy "Duke'' Cunningham, R-Escondido, who admitted taking $2.4 million in bribes from defense contractors. Cunningham began serving an eight-year, four-month sentence in federal prison earlier this year. Lewis has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. Neither he, nor any members of his staff, nor anyone with Copeland Lowery has been formally accused of any crimes. Lewis chairs the House Appropriations Committee, which oversees $900 billion in federal spending. Copeland Lowery lobbies on behalf of San Bernardino and Riverside county agencies and businesses that seek funding from the committee. Lewis' staff could not provide an overall estimate of how much federal money the congressman has helped steer to his district and surrounding areas. A spokesman, however, provided statements on major projects Lewis helped fund. Some of Lewis' largest earmarks have gone toward public safety, according to 41st District staff. Between 2001 and 2005, the congressman earmarked more than $100 million for fuel reduction and rehabilitation in the drought-stricken mountain forests, more than $100 million in flood-control projects and $10 million for a new aviation firefighting-training center in San Bernardino, dedicated in Lewis' name on the same day San Bernardino County confirmed being subpoenaed. Among longtime area leaders who are grateful for Lewis' influence in Washington is Don Rogers, 66, interim director of the Inland Valley Development Agency. The IVDA oversees re-use of the former Norton Air Force Base, now San Bernardino International Airport. "When the base closed in 1994 it cost us 10,000 jobs, and it was a serious blow to the local economy,'' Rogers said. "Since then, Jerry Lewis has taken a serious role in restructuring the airport to bring jobs back to the area. To date, we have replaced 2,000 jobs. "It's a sign of a strong leader that he can take the national perspective and keep his local district's priorities in mind. He supported the closing of Norton because it was the right thing to do for the nation. But he's kept the local interest in what happens at the airport now.'' Other Lewis earmarks were intended to benefit military veterans' health. Between 2001 and 2005, he earmarked $29 million for musculoskeletal research at Jerry L. Pettis Memorial Veterans Medical Center in Loma Linda.
Profitable reserves
Comparisons of Lewis' earmarks in and around the 41st District over the past five years with lobbying fees paid by Copeland Lowery clients in the region show that doing business with the lobbyists has paid off handsomely for some. From 2001 to 2005, Lewis earmarked more than $60 million for projects at San Bernardino International Airport. The earmarks included $28 million for jet and rocket-engine research, $12.9 million for surveillance research, $8.5 million for converting Cessna planes to unmanned aircraft, $12 million for hangar and runway upgrades and other maintenance. The IVDA paid Copeland Lowery $60,000 in 2004 and 2005. Factor in campaign contributions, and the web of relationships between donors and benefactors like Lewis is more apparent -- and complex. • Since 1994, Jack and Laura Dangermond of mapping-software giant ESRI in Redlands gave at least $20,900 in campaign contributions to Lewis, according to federal records. Between 2000 and 2005, ESRI paid Copeland Lowery $360,000 in lobbying fees. At the same time, Lewis earmarked more than $90 million for ESRI projects that included defense-intelligence systems and a mapping database to assist in rebuilding war-torn Iraq. ESRI last week was the first private company to confirm being subpoenaed in the ongoing federal probe. • From 1993 to 2006, defense contractor General Atomics in San Diego gave at least $73,000 in campaign contributions to Lewis. From 2003 to 2005, General Atomics paid Copeland Lowery $330,000 in lobbying fees. Between 2001 and 2004, Lewis earmarked more than $58 million for General Atomics to develop and test unmanned aircraft at El Mirage Dry Lake, outside Adelanto in San Bernardino County's High Desert. General Atomics, builders of unmanned Predator B spy planes used in Iraq and Afghanistan, was identified last month by the Center for Public Integrity in Washington as the leading corporate sponsor of congressional travel for more than five years. The firm spent about $660,000 on 86 trips for lawmakers, aides and their spouses from 2000 to mid-2005, including trips to Australia and Turkey costing up to $28,000 apiece, the center found in conjunction with American Public Media and Northwestern University's Medill News Service. • From 2002 to 2004, Advatech Pacific Inc. CEO Jay Ebersohl and his wife gave Lewis $4,250 in campaign contributions. In April, Ebersohl gave $3,500 to a political-action committee called Small Biz Tech PAC, which is run by Lewis' stepdaughter, Julia Willis-Leon, in Las Vegas. From May 2005 to last April, other Advatech executives gave Small Biz Tech PAC $3,000. Between 2003 and 2005, Redlands-based Advatech Pacific paid Copeland Lowery $200,000 in lobbying fees. From 2001 to 2005, Lewis earmarked more than $28 million for Advatech to develop technology integration at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, and to create software to help design, analyze and produce weaponry capable of traveling four to eight times the speed of sound. • As director of Small Biz Tech PAC, Lewis' stepdaughter has received more than $40,000 in fees, retainers, commissions and expenses from about $115,000 the PAC has taken in since its formation in February 2005. The largest single donor to the PAC is Letitia White, a Copeland Lowery lobbyist and former longtime Lewis staffer. Another donor to the PAC is Nicholas Karangelen, president of Copeland Lowery client Trident Data Systems in San Diego. White and Karangelen co-own a $1 million town home in Washington that first served as the PAC's headquarters. White's signature appears on documents released by some local agencies since they were subpoenaed. • In the early 1990s, Audre Recognition Systems Inc. in San Diego gave Lewis $5,000 in campaign contributions. Former Audre CEO Tom Casey told NBC News last month that Lewis tried to steer him to hire Lowery as a lobbyist, and that Lewis sought Canadian stock options for Lowery in someone else's name. Casey said he refused and that he did not get the Pentagon contract he sought. The day NBC broadcast its interview with Casey, Lewis issued a news release before the NBC report aired in Southern California flatly denying trading his influence for stock options or any other incentive.
A revered lobbyist
From fire-and-flood vulnerable canyon enclaves like Lytle Creek and Forest Falls to booming ex-urban towns like Yucaipa and Yucca Valley, from the San Bernardino Valley's sprawl to the fast-growing cities of the High Desert, many people who live around here say the controversy surrounding Lewis is just another inside-the-Beltway, Washington story. "The money he got for removing dead trees in the forest, this is one of the best examples that Jerry Lewis is acting on behalf of his constituents,'' said Gerry Newcombe, 72, president of the Arrowhead Communities Fire Safe Council and former San Bernardino fire chief. "Tree companies made money on it, but Jerry didn't profit from it,'' said Newcombe, who said he's known Lewis since the 1950s. "I'd bet my life on it.'' San Bernardino Mayor Pat Morris, 68, has known Lewis nearly as long as Newcombe. "Those of us who know the character of the man believe in him.'' Morris said. "I've known him 40 years, and he's genuine.'' Lee Pearl, general manager of the Yucca Valley-based Hi-Desert Water District, said that although his agency is a Copeland Lowery client, it has not been subpoenaed. "People here are very grateful for all the funding he's brought in,'' Pearl said. "Here we have one of the most senior, bullet-proof Republican leaders in the country, and, for some reason, now he's under intense scrutiny. There's more to this story than a lobbyist. People in this area love Jerry Lewis.'' Regardless of continuing news reports about Washington lobbyists' profits in Lewis' district and their influence in the nation's capital, local agency managers like Kirby Brill say they have full confidence in Lewis. "Sometimes it's hard to judge a book by its cover,'' said Brill, general manager of the nearly 5,000-square-mile, Apple Valley-based Mojave Water Agency, which also serves Hesperia, Victorville, Adelanto, Barstow and Yucca Valley. The agency is also a Copeland Lowery client. "But when it comes to Jerry Lewis, what you see is what you get,'' Brill said. "He's inauspicious, down to earth. He brings his dog to work. He looks you in the eye when he talks to you. He asks questions. Either he's a really good actor or he genuinely cares.'' Lewis helped bring $30 million to $40 million to the High Desert for a 70-mile Mojave River pipeline that was vital for water-supply plans in a region with close to half a million residents, Brill said. Copeland Lowery has done a fair job so far, Brill said. "Our perspective on anyone we hire is, ‘Do they understand what we do and what we need?' '' Brill said. "We don't use them to simply go get money. They do research for us and help us work with other representatives, not just Jerry Lewis.'' Brill and other area leaders who support Lewis said they are waiting for investigators' conclusions before drawing any of their own. "I'm not at all clear what's behind the investigation,'' Brill said. "If there's something that's not right, it needs to be looked at. In the meantime, we're withholding judgment until it's completed.''
Contact writer Guy McCarthy at (909) 386-3872 or via e-mail at guy.mccarthy@sbsun.com. | ||||||||||||||
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