Lance Armstrong Charity Reportedly Seeking D.C. Help in Doping ...

On the heels of a report that a Lance Armstrong Foundation representative lobbied a congressman about the doping probe against the former cycling champion, the Associated Press and The New York Times cite additional signs that the cancer charity is enlisting political help in the case.

The Wall Street Journal reported Monday on a meeting between lobbyists for the foundation and staff members of New York Rep. Jose Serrano?s office, which a spokesman for the congressman said focused largely on the nonprofit U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, or USADA.

The agency, which gets most of its $15-million budget from federal sources, has charged Mr. Armstrong with using performance-enhancing drugs, an allegation the seven-time Tour de France champion denies.

Foundation officials have also met in recent weeks with Texas Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison and an unidentified member of Congress, and the charity has hired the prominent Washington lobbying firm Patton Boggs. Wisconsin Rep. James Sensenbrenner announced plans last week to investigate the anti-doping organization?s use of taxpayer funds in the probe of Mr. Armstrong.

A foundation spokeswoman said that ?certainly USADA comes up? when charity officials are on Capitol Hill but that its lobbying focuses on ?the important domestic policy issues that will have such an impact on cancer survivors and their families.?

Source: http://philanthropy.com/blogs/philanthropytoday/lance-armstrong-charity-reportedly-seeking-d-c-help-in-doping-case/50551

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