The Daily Muck

The trial of Brent Wilkes (recently convicted of bribing Duke Cunningham) and former CIA executive director Dusty Foggo, both charged with multiple counts of fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering, may be headed east. The presiding judge believes that an Alexandria, Virginia venue would make it easier for the parade of beltway witnesses who will testify.(San Diego Union Tribune)

Bernard Kerik may be testifying under oath next week in a suit unrelated to his federal indictment last week. The trial concerns the claims of a former correction Officer, Eric DeRavin, who filed a bias suit against Kerik for his alleged racial discrimination when he headed the city Correction Department. (NY Post)

The list of donors who helped raise $165 million for President Clinton’s library has remained a secret – except to those who bought portions of the list through a data company owned by a Clinton donor and friend. Walter Karl, a subsidiary of the data company InfoUSA, compiled the list of 38,000 donors for the auction block. (ABC’s “The Blotter”)

One of the top three security contractors in Iraq, Triple Canopy, may be for sale, though it’s unclear whether it’s public or private investors who might be buying. There is speculation that the company has had funding issues, and some of its contractors were allegedly involved in a possible shooting of unarmed Iraqis in December 2004. (Wired)

Meet representative Ric Keller (R-FL) part II. After Keller refused to address questions from Harpers about how the “fierce champion of family values and morality” candidate had an extra-marital affair with a young staffer and used campaign funds to pay her, Keller launched a smear attack on the investigative reporter. Keller has refused to address any specific allegations about his affair, divorce, and shady financial transactions. (Harpers)

Freedom’s Watch, a well-connected advocacy group that launched a $15 million ad campaign this summer in support of the surge of American troops in Iraq, is conducting focus groups to test language that could be used to sell a war in Iran to Americans. Former White House spokesman Ari Fleischer and a former deputy assistant to President Bush, Bradley A. Blakeman, are at the top of Freedom’s Watch’s leadership. The focus group participant interviewed by Mother Jones said she had the impression after the session that those trying to get public support for war with Iran did not have “a shot in hell.” (Mother Jones)

The Federal Elections Commission (FEC) is revising its rules for election ads to comply with a Supreme Court decision earlier this year that held that corporate and union money cannot be banned from paying for election ads as long as the ads do not advocate for or against a candidate. But the FEC’s draft of the new rules is drawing criticism that they would create a loophole in the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 by allowing any kind of ad that talks about an issue, rather than an individual candidate. Also, one of the draft rules would eliminate disclosure requirements for corporations or unions paying for ads. (The Hill)