Look at who's who in 1st District congressman's campaign finance case.
Arguing that the government attempted "a setup" to charge Rep. Jeff Fortenberry with a crime when he was "unaware of any illegal foreign or conduit contributions to his 2016 campaign," the Lincoln congressman's attorney filed a motion in U.S. District Court in California on Tuesday to dismiss the indictment.
"With no basis to charge the congressman with a crime, the government instead concocted one," attorney John Littrell of Los Angeles alleged in the motion filed in the Central District of California where Fortenberry has been charged.
It was the second motion to dismiss the case filed by Fortenberry's attorney following on the heels of an earlier motion to dismiss the case for lack of venue, an argument that the case should not be tried in California when contacts involved in the case were made in the District of Columbia and Nebraska.
The federal indictment alleges that the nine-term Republican congressman lied to the FBI and concealed information about $30,000 in illegal 2016 campaign contributions from Nigerian-born billionaire Gilbert Chagoury that were funneled to Fortenberry's campaign through other individuals who attended a fundraiser in Los Angeles.
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Tuesday's motion argues for dismissal because the indictment "fails to allege materiality."
"This prosecution is the actualization of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's grave concern regarding prosecutorial overreach in Section 1001 (lying to the government) cases," the motion stated.
Ginsburg had expressed concern that "an overzealous prosecutor or investigator — aware that a person has committed some suspicious act, but unable to make a criminal case — will create a crime by surprising the suspect, asking about those acts and receiving a false denial."
This case, the motion stated, is "entirely about Congressman Fortenberry's failure to accurately repeat back to the government the content of the 10-minute phone call that the government's informant placed to him" nearly a year earlier.
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"This motion provides a very clear picture of a setup," said Chad Kolton, a spokesman for Fortenberry.
Kolton is managing partner of Blueprint Communications, a public outreach and communications firm in Washington.
"A California prosecutor knew Rep. Fortenberry had no knowledge of the crime being investigated so he created an excuse to charge him anyway," Kolton said.
"Prosecutors ordered an informant to give Rep. Fortenberry information he didn't know, then waited nearly a year to send FBI agents to surprise him at home to ask about it.
"Despite Rep. Fortenberry's efforts to cooperate, when he didn't recall details the government's informant had been directed to describe to him nearly a year earlier prosecutors waited until the Biden administration was in power and then brought multiple charges that had nothing to do with their campaign finance investigation."
Kolton said that "this setup of a highly effective and well-respected member of Congress is another alarming example of a Justice Department and FBI that are out of control and destroying the lives and reputations of far too many Americans."
Fortenberry, who was first elected to the House in 2004, represents eastern Nebraska's 1st Congressional District.
Photos: Jeff Fortenberry through the years
Jeff Fortenberry
1st District Rep. Jeff Fortenberry speaks with more than 200 constituents during a town hall meeting at Southeast Community College on Monday, Aug. 8, 2011. The nation's debt was the most popular topic of the evening. (BRYNN ANDERSON / Lincoln Journal Star)
BRYNN ANDERSON/Lincoln Journal S
Memorial Day
Rep. Jeff Fortenberry speaks during a Memorial Day event honoring military veterans in 2012 at Antelope Park.
Journal Star file photo
Osborne in congress
First District candidate for Congress Jeff Fortenberry (right) speaks to members of the media during a news conference in 2004 at the Fremont Municipal Airport. Supporting at the press conference were Congressmen Tom Osborne and Bob Goodlatte of Virginia.
Archive photo
RB12081602.jpg
ASHLAND, NE - 08/16/2012 - Sen. Ben Nelson humors Congressman Jeff Fortenberry (second from left) as he opens his remarks during the 2012 Legislative Summit at the Strategic Air & Space Museum. Congressional report speakers were (L-R) Congressman Adrian Smith, Congressman Jeff Fortenberry, Congressman Lee Terry, Sen. Mike Johanns, and Sen. Ben Nelson. ROBERT BECKER/Lincoln Journal Star 8/17/2012 2A Sen. Ben Nelson humors Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (second from left) as he opens his remarks during the 2012 Legislative Summit at the Strategic Air & Space Museum on Thursday. Congressional report speakers were (from left) Rep. Adrian Smith, Fortenberry, Rep. Lee Terry, Sen. Mike Johanns and Nelson. ROBERT BECKER/LINCOLN JOURNAL STAR
rb1208
wl04110203
Republicans Gov. Mike Johanns (left) and Sen. Chuck Hagel join Jeff Fortenberry at the Cornhusker Hotel Tuesday night. Fortenberry thanked them for lending their "good names," to his campaign.
WILLIAM LAUER
Czech ambassador
Rep. Jeff Fortenberry walks into the Kolac Korner in Prague on Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2013, for a reception to welcome Petr Gandalovic, the Czech ambassador to the United States.
MORGAN SPIEHS/Lincoln Journal Star
Ben Sasse
Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (from left), Republican Senate nominee Ben Sasse and Gov. Dave Heineman share a laugh at Sasse's Election Night party following the 2014 primary.
FRANCIS GARDLER, Journal Star
Memorial Day
U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, R-1st Dist., speaks at a Memorial Day service at Wyuka Cemetery.
DAN LITTLE/Lincoln Journal Star
Fortenberry in France
Jeff Fortenberry (right) with veteran Bill Elwood of Red Oak, Iowa. Fortenberry is a member of the congressional delegation that joined President Barack Obama and other world leaders in paying tribute to the U.S. and allied forces who fought and died in Normandy on D-Day 70 years ago.
Courtesy photo
Pilger tornado damage
Congressman Jeff Fortenberry (left) and Gov. Dave Heineman tour damage in downtown Pilger with Fire Chief Kory Koehlmoos after the tornadoes.Â
GWYNETH ROBERTS/Lincoln Journal Star
Prange Funeral
LINCOLN, NEB - 08/08/2014 - Widow Liz Prange receives a hug from Congressman Jeff Fortenberry following the funeral service for her husband, United States Army Staff Sergeant Benjamin G. Prange, on Friday outside Southwood Lutheran Church.Â
KRISTIN STREFF/Lincoln Journal Star
Jeff Fortenberry, Columbus
Military historian Timothy Kilvert-Jones (left), U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (center) and Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce President K.C. Belitz visit the Andrew Jackson Higgins Memorial, which includes a full-size replica of Higgins' landing craft, on Tuesday in Columbus.
TYLER ELLYSON/Columbus Telegram
Jeff Fortenberry
U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (left) speaks to Pete Ricketts' supporters as his wife, Celeste, looks on prior to Ricketts' appearance on Tuesday at The Cornhusker Marriott in Lincoln. Fortenberry told the crowd to enjoy the GOP's wins. Winning is wonderful, he said. "But it's not enough. We have to govern."
FRANCIS GARDLER/Lincoln Journal Star
fortenberry
Former President George W. Bush, along with former first lady Laura Bush, met this week in Washington with the family of a Nebraska soldier whom the president had decorated with a Purple Heart weeks before the soldier died of wounds suffered in a roadside bomb explosion in Afghanistan. The meeting was arranged by Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (far right). Capt. Robert Yllescas' two daughters, Julia Faye (right) and Eva Grace, were joined by their mother, Dena, who has remarried, and her husband, John Johnston, along with their 21-month-old son, Carsten.
Courtesy photo
Jeff Fortenberry at military recruitment center
Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (right) talks with U.S. Army Capt. Jonathan D. Murrell (left) and Sgt. 1st Class Anthony E. Fey on Friday during a visit to the military recruitment center on North 27th Street.
FRANCIS GARDLER/Lincoln Journal Star
Offutt Air Force Base Task Force
Congressmen Adrian Smith (from left), Brad Ashford and Jeff Fortenberry joined Gov. Pete Ricketts to answer questions about a task force formed to push for runway repairs at Offutt Air Force Base.
GWYNETH ROBERTS/Journal Star
Election 2016: Republican Party
LINCOLN, NEB - 11/08/2016 Congressman Jeff Fortenberry smiles for a picture with supporters Sydney Langness (from left), Joyce Hasselbalch, Karen Lay, Myre Meints and Donna McClain, all of Lincoln, during the Lancaster Republican Party's election night event on Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2016, at Chez Hay Reception Hall. MATT RYERSON, Journal Star
MATT RYERSON, Journal Star
Yazidi Cultural Center
Laila Khoudeida, board member and secretary for the global Yazidi group Yazda, speaks with Congressman Jeff Fortenberry during a tour of the newly opened Yazidi Cultural Center on Friday.
GWYNETH ROBERTS, Journal Star
Fortenberry
Lincoln Police Officer Christopher Milisits keeps an eye on the crowd as Rep. Jeff Fortenberry answers questions during a town hall meeting with constituents at Lincoln Southwest High School.Â
KRISTIN STREFF, Journal Star file photo
Fortenberry Meets with Malawi's Ambassador
Congressman Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE) on Monday (April 24) issued the following statement after meeting Malawi’s Ambassador to the United States: “Congratulations to Norfolk and their sister city Blantyre, Malawi. I was honored to welcome the Malawi Ambassador, His Excellency Edward Yakobe Sawerengera, and the Mayor of Blantyre, the Honorable Wild Ndipo, to my office. We had a good discussion about education, agriculture, and conservation practices." Fortenberry serves on the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations.
COURTESY PHOTO
Fortenberry Town Hall
Rep. Jeff Fortenberry speaks as police monitor the crowd at Schoo Middle School.
AMBER BAESLER, Journal Star
Fortenberry Town Hall
LINCOLN, NEB - 07/31/2017 Rep. Jeff Fortenberry speaks at a town hall meeting on Monday, July 31, 2017 at Lux Middle School. AMBER BAESLER, Journal Star
AMBER BAESLER, Journal Star
Fortenberry 79
Congressman Jeff Fortenberry (left) takes a question during a town hall meeting amid hundreds of constituents on Monday, March 13, 2017, at Lincoln Southwest High School.Â
KRISTIN STREFF, Journal Star
James Terry
Congressman Jeff Fortenberry (left) and James Terry chat during Fortenberry's visit to the SCC Entrepreneurship Center in June 2017
Courtesy photo
Fortenberry town Hall
Lincoln, NE - 7/27/2018 - Rep. Jeff Fortenberry listens to a question at a town hall meeting on Friday, July 27, 2018, at Schoo Middle School. GWYNETH ROBERTS, Journal Star
GWYNETH ROBERTS
Jeff Fortenberry campaign sign vandalism
A large Jeff Fortenberry sign was defaced in October with big googly eyes and a misspelling of the incumbent candidate’s name.
COURTESY PHOTO
Election 2018 Nebraska Republicans
Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, R-Neb.,, second right, shakes the hand of a supporter during a Nebraska Republican Party Get Out The Vote rally tour stop in Omaha, Neb., Friday, Nov. 2, 2018. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)
Nati Harnik
Senator Deb Fischer wins re-election
Rep. Jeff Fortenberry hugs one of his daughters while speaking at an election party in Lincoln Tuesday.
LUKE FRANKE, For the Journal Star
The 2019 Inaugural Ball at Pinnacle Bank Arena
U.S. Representative Jeff Fortenberry and his wife Celeste are presented during the "Grand March" on Saturday Jan. 12th, 2019, for the 2019 Inaugural Ball at Pinnacle Bank Arena.Â
Savannah Blake, Journal Star
Fortenberry town hall 2
1st District Rep. Jeff Fortenberry speaks at a town hall meeting in August 2019 at Lincoln North Star High School. Fortenberry, a Republican, had $1.9 million in campaign cash on hand in April to face Democratic challenger Kate Bolz. Â
GWYNETH ROBERTS, Journal Star file photo
Legislative Summit Nebraska
Nebraska's elected lawmakers, from left: Reps. Don Bacon, Adrian Smith, and Jeff Fortenberry and Sens. Deb Fischer and Ben Sasse sit on stage during a legislative summit sponsored by the Omaha and Lincoln Chambers of Commerce, at the Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum in Ashland Thursday.
Nati Harnik, Associated Press
CHIEF STANDING BEAR
Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts (from left), Rep. Jeff Fortenberry and Sen. Deb Fischer listen to remarks during an unveiling ceremony of a statue of Ponca Chief Standing Bear in Statuary Hall in September.
Journal Star file photo
Fortenberry
Jeff Fortenberry (third from left) watches as President Trump signs The Great American Outdoors Act on Tuesday.
Jeff Fortenberry Facebook page
Jeff Fortenberry and Pete Ricketts
Gov. Pete Ricketts (right) defended Rep. Jeff Fortenberry on Monday, describing him as "a man of high integrity." The two Republicans are shown here at a meeting in September 2020 with Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, who visited Great Plains Beef in Lincoln.
GWYNETH ROBERTS, Journal Star file photo
Lincoln South Beltway event
Rep. Jeff Fortenberry speaks at an event to celebrate the progress made on construction of the Lincoln South Beltway on Oct. 8.Â
GWYNETH ROBERTS, Journal Star file photo
Trump rally
U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry listens as President Donald Trump speaks at Eppley Airfield in Omaha on Tuesday. President Trump spoke as part of a Make America Great Again! campaign rally.
ANNA REED, Omaha WORLD-HERALD
GOP Election Party, 11.3
Rep. Jeff Fortenberry introduces his wife Celeste during the Lancaster County Republican election watch party on Tuesday at the Embassy Suites.Â
JUSTIN WAN, Journal Star
GOP Election Party, 11.3
LINCOLN, NEB. - 11/03/2020 - Rep. Jeff Fortenberry speaks during Lancaster County Republican election watch party, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020, at Embassy Suites. JUSTIN WAN, Journal Star
JUSTIN WAN Journal Star
Walk for Life 1.16
Rep. Jeff Fortenberry speaks to anti-abortion advocates near the north steps of the state Capitol during the Walk for Life in January.
KENNETH FERRIERA, Journal Star file photo
Republicans Election Day, 5.4
Rep. Jeff Fortenberry speaks during the Republican watch party on May 4.
JUSTIN WAN, Journal Star file photo
Fortenberry Kadhimi
Rep. Jeff Fortenberry meets with with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi.Â
COURETSY PHOTO
Jeff Fortenberry at Mexico border
Jeff Fortenberry tweeted this photo and said help is needed at the border, where he met with the sheriff near the Texas town of Uvalde.
Courtesy photo
Watch now: Fortenberry overlooks the Rio Grande near the border
Federal Legislative Summit
Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (left) and Sen. Deb Fischer converse at the Federal Legislative Summit on Aug. 12 at the Strategic Air Command and Aerospace Museum.Â
GWYNETH ROBERTS, Journal Star
Federal Legislative Summit
Rep. Adrian Smith (left) and Sen. Deb Fischer (right) listen as Rep. Jeff Fortenberry speaks at the Federal Legislative Summit on Thursday at the Strategic Air Command and Aerospace Museum.Â
GWYNETH ROBERTS, Journal Star
Fortenberry, 10.5
U.S. Congressman Jeff Fortenberry (right) talks to Tom Henning, Chairman, President and CEO at Assurity Life, during a Lincoln Chamber of Commerce lunch on Tuesday. Fortenberry talked to business leaders about the important issues facing Nebraskans at the federal level and the impact in Lincoln.
FRANCIS GARDLER, Journal Star
Fortenberry, 10.5
U.S. Congressman Jeff Fortenberry laughs at a comment from one of his fellow diners during a Lincoln Chamber of Commerce lunch on Tuesday. He spoke about the important issues facing Nebraskans at the federal level and how those issues impact businesses in Lincoln.
FRANCIS GARDLER, Journal Star
Fortenberry, 10.5
U.S. Congressman Jeff Fortenberry talks to diners during a Lincoln Chamber of Commerce lunch to discuss the important issues facing Nebraskans at the federal level on Oct. 5 at the Country Club of Lincoln.
FRANCIS GARDLER, Journal Star file photo
Fortenberry, 10.5
U.S. Congressman Jeff Fortenberry speaks during a Lincoln Chamber of Commerce lunch Tuesday at the Country Club of Lincoln. He talked to business leaders about the important issues facing Nebraskans at the federal level and the impact in Lincoln.
FRANCIS GARDLER, Journal Star
Reach the writer at 402-473-7248 or dwalton@journalstar.com .
On Twitter @LJSdon
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