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Jason Leopold Follows FOIA Requests of the Late Aaron Swartz; Craig Holman of Public Citizen Says Chevron Made Illegal Campaign Contribution

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Truthout’s Jason Leopold returns to talk about his recent report on the trail of FOIA requests left by Aaron Swartz before his suicide;  Craig Holman of Public Citizen is back, fighting Chevron’s illegal campaign contribution.  Leopold’s report follows the FOIA requests that were submitted by Aaron Swartz, the computer genius who died by suicide in January.  Swartz was facing prosecution for downloading and sharing academic reports from MIT, and Leopold has been reviewing materials that were requested by Swartz related to his own case and other matters.  Leopold has also filed new FOIA requests, and comments on the unusual lead role played by the Secret Service in the investigation.  We talk about a wide range of issues related to the aggressive handling of this case by federal prosecutors, and a recent confessional story published at The Atlantic by a close friend of Swartz, Quinn Norton.

At 44:30, Holman explains why Citizens United does not permit the oil giant Chevron to donate to political campaigns.  He talks about a complaint he filed with the Federal Elections Commission and explains the company’s $2.5 mil contribution to a SuperPAC associated with John Boehner.  He also comments on Sheldon Adelson’s admission of bribery in China, and Obama’s new soft-money activist group.  Visit the Public Citizen website here.