U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek touted legislation expanding health insurance for poor kids in late October when he joined House Speaker Nancy Pelosi at a Miami neighborhood clinic, praising the push to help children.
But behind the scenes, Meek, a member of the influential House Ways and Means Committee, helped Miami cigar maker Jorge Padron get a private meeting with top House Democrats — including Pelosi — so Padron could lobby against the higher cigar taxes that were proposed to partly offset the cost of expanding the program.
Months later, Padron hosted a $1,000-per-person fundraiser for Meek at his company headquarters in Miami.
Read the full story at MiamiHerald.com.
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