NBC Lawyer Who Blocked Pro-Troops Ad Gives Generously to Dems

The recent NBC kerfuffle involving the rejection of ads supporting the troops during the holidays continues to get more and more interesting.

Now, it appears one of the attorneys involved in the decision gives generously to Democrats.

As reported by Michael Brady of the Majority Accountability Project:

The NBC lawyer who refused to allow a non-profit group to air an advertisement thanking American troops for their service has donated at least $45,000 to a host of Congressional Democrats, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, New York Senator Hillary Clinton and the campaign committees of House and Senate Democrats, research by the Majority Accountability Project (www.majorityap.com) has found.

According to a Fox News report, Richard Cotton, the general counsel for NBC/Universal, was one of two network officials who decided not to sell ad time to Freedom's Watch, which describes itself as "a nonpartisan movement dedicated to preserving, protecting, and defending conservative principles and promoting a conservative agenda."

In fairness, Cotton has also donated to Republican candidates, including Rudy Giuliani, John McCain, and John Boehner. However, as Brady noted, Cotton's Democrat contributions are far greater than for GOP candidates:

According to FEC records, Cotton has been a generous donor to Democrat campaigns and liberal causes. Earlier this year, he donated $1,000 to the political action committee (PAC) of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and last year gave the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) $7,000.

Over the past decade, Cotton has contributed at least $45,000 to Congressional Democrats, including $2,000 each to Clinton and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC).

Cotton has donated to some GOP candidates, including $1,000 earlier this year to House Republican Leader John Boehner, D-OH, but those contributions are a fraction of his total giving. While Cotton has written checks to the DCCC, DSCC, and the Democratic National Committee (DNC), he has never given to a Republican campaign committee, according to those FEC records.

Yet, Brady identified a possibly more delicious side of this story:

Ironically, it was one of NBC's networks, MSNBC, that earlier this year created a stir when they detailed the political giving of journalists and news organizations.

"Because appearing to be fair is part of being fair, most mainstream news organizations discourage marching for causes, displaying political bumper stickers or giving cash to candidates," the cable news station reported.

"The pattern of donations, with nearly nine out of 10 giving to Democratic candidates and causes, appears to confirm a leftward tilt in newsrooms," according to the MSNBC study, which found that 125 journalists gave to Democrats and liberal causes since 2004, 16 to Republicans, and two gave to both parties.

Noting that "many news organizations have applied the rules to only political reporters and editors," the report revealed that "NBC, MSNBC and MSNBC.com say they don't discourage or encourage campaign contributions, but they require employees to report any potential conflicts of interest in advance and receive permission of the senior editor."

Oh what a tattered web...