According to Politico, the “man behind the political cash grab” who negotiated the deal that would substantially increase the maximum contributions that donors could make to party committees is Perkins Coie’s Mark Elias:
A powerful Democratic lawyer helped craft a provision that was slipped into a year-end spending bill allowing political parties to raise huge new pools of cash – including some for legal fees that are likely going to be collected by his own firm.
Marc Elias, a partner at the Seattle-based law firm Perkins Coie, was called in to advise outgoing Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s aides on the campaign finance proposal on Tuesday, as they negotiated it with representatives from House Speaker John Boehner’s office, multiple sources confirm.
Elias is also the attorney for Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the populist senator who has rallied opposition against this deal.