Bader has long been a fixture of Republican politics in Washington. He was John Carlson’s consultant in the talk show host’s unsuccessful run for governor in 2000. He has done extensive work for the state Republican Party.

In 2006 the firm was paid by Luke Esser’s unsuccessful re-election campaign for the state Senate. Esser is now chairman of the Republican Party, and Madison has continued doing work for the party. Other clients include King County Councilwoman Jane Hague, unsuccessful county executive candidate David Irons Jr., state legislators Pam Roach and Toby Nixon and the “Honest Elections Project,” the group that pushed for an elected King County auditor.

The allegations in the charges are that the consultant took money from Weimar to pay for the candidate’s campaign activities. The charging document says:

Beginning in approximately spring 2004, and continuing thereafter up to and including approximately August 25, 2004, in the District of Alaska, and elsewhere, WILLIAM WEIMAR, CANDIDATE A, CONSULTANT A, and others known and unknown, did knowingly and unlawfully conspire, confederate, and agree together to deprive the public of the honest services that CANDIDATE A would provide as an Alaska State Legislator, through a scheme to disguise WEIMAR's direct payment to CONSULTANT A of approximately $20,000.00 in expenses for CANDIDATE A's campaign for the Legislature, without reporting that payment as required by applicable Alaska law and regulations and without routing it for payment through CANDIDATE A's campaign, and through the foreseeable use of the mails, interstate couriers or interstate wire communications, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1341, 1343, and 1346.

In the summer of 2004, according to the indictment, Weimar called the consultant to tell him he would pay off $20,000 of the candidate’s unpaid expenses.

On or about August 23, 2004, WEIMAR immediately after the telephone call with CONSULTANT A, called CANDIDATE A and told CANDIDATE A that he would not be receiving any further bills from CONSULTANT A.

UPDATE: I just talked to McKenna. He said he had heard nothing about Madison's work in Alaska or the firm's name coming up in connection with the political scandal there. He said Madison was paid in his 2004 campaign for design services done by Jeff Davis and for postage for campaign mailers. McKenna said he had no plans to use the firm again this year because he was not doing the same sort of mail efforts. The campaign did use Davis this year to design a return envelope.