Gov. Terry McAuliffe said Thursday that he has never lobbied in the U.S. on behalf of a foreign government, adding that federal investigators looking into his foreign connections are focused on a “very specific” lobbyist registration issue.
“I have never lobbied for a foreign government here. Ever,” McAuliffe said during a morning radio appearance on Richmond’s WRVA.
The Democratic governor’s remarks came a day after his attorney said the Department of Justice is looking into a potential violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act, a federal statute meant to limit foreign influence in U.S. policy.
In the first report on the investigation Monday, CNN reported a focus on $120,000 in political contributions to McAuliffe linked to Chinese businessman Wang Wenliang.
“The media was wrong. Shocking,” McAuliffe said when asked about the changing accounts of the investigation’s target.
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McAuliffe has said he was not contacted by investigators before media reports surfaced. Wang, through a spokesman, said he too had not been contacted. McAuliffe’s attorney, James W. Cooper, said the DOJ told him it has no evidence of a violation.
Much about the investigation remains unclear. The DOJ generally does not comment on active investigations.
Asked why the investigation is continuing if there’s no evidence of wrongdoing, McAuliffe said he did not know.
“Hopefully it’ll be shut down pretty quickly,” McAuliffe said.
FARA, which requires agents of foreign entities to register and disclose their activities, is not limited to lobbying on behalf of foreign governments. The law also applies to individuals and companies whose “principal place of business” is outside the U.S. It covers a broad range of political activity to further foreign interests, including publicity, consulting and the solicitation or disbursement of funds or other things of value “for or in the interest of” a foreign entity.
The restriction on foreign political contributions was originally a part of FARA, according to a Federal Election Commission brochure aimed at foreign nationals, but was later incorporated into federal election law.
McAuliffe has said the contributions linked to Wang were valid because the businessman has held a green card since 2007, which makes him eligible to contribute.
The donations did not come from Wang personally, but were made by West Legend Corp., a New Jersey-based affiliate of Wang’s business enterprise. According to the FEC, companies located in the U.S. cannot make political donations if the contribution is financed by a foreign owner or directed by individual foreign nationals.
Wang is connected to the Chinese government as a representative to the National People’s Congress, China’s largely ceremonial parliament.
McAuliffe also responded Thursday to a Time Magazine report that said he had invited Wang to a 2013 fundraiser at the home of Hillary Clinton, a longtime friend of McAuliffe’s.
“The guy was invited to a fundraiser with many people at it,” McAuliffe said. “People come to fundraisers.”
McAuliffe, who has accused the DOJ and FBI of leaking information about the probe, said the investigation “has nothing to do with Virginia or Virginia politics” because it’s focused on his work as a private businessman.
“This is a political world we’re in. There’s a big presidential campaign going on,” he said. “I’m a big boy. I get it.”
Though McAuliffe has said he’s confident he’ll be cleared and stuck to his published schedule of official events, signs of fallout are beginning to show.
The Cincinnati Enquirer reported late Wednesday that McAuliffe will no longer appear at a fundraiser next week for former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, a Democrat now running for U.S. Senate.
In a radio appearance Wednesday, House of Delegates Speaker William J. Howell, R-Stafford, said he’s reserving judgment.
“I sincerely hope it’s not true,” Howell said. “I do believe that everybody’s entitled to their innocence until proven guilty.”