Illegal Campaign Contributions | featured news

French ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy has been placed under formal investigation over claims his 2007 election campaign received illegal donations from France's richest woman. Mr Sarkozy is accused of accepting thousands of euros from L'Oreal heiress Liliane Bettencourt, now aged 90.

Former U.S. Senator John Edwards was acquitted on Thursday on one count of taking illegal campaign contributions and the judge declared a mistrial on five other counts because the jury was deadlocked.

A judge has ruled that the campaign finance law banning corporations from making contributions to federal candidates is unconstitutional. In a ruling issued late Thursday, U.S. District Judge James Cacheris tossed out part of the indictment against two men accused of illegally reimbursing donors to Hillary Clinton’s Senate and presidential campaigns. Cacheris says that under last year’s Citizens United Supreme Court case, corporations enjoy the same right as people to contribute to campaigns.

The FBI released documents on Monday showing that New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner had actually worked for them as an informant, including giving his assistance in a terrorism investigation, before he was given a pardon by President Ronald Reagan for illegal campaign contributions.