Bingo:

I appreciate your line of thought on this, and I agree that generally it's a single individual that pushes things. I'm changing much of the dialogue for the federation however. I'm planning to paint a picture of a very powerful and influential organization. Such that this particular move isn't necessarily a game ender for them if it goes wrong. In the senate scene the trade federation won't be claiming ignorance but will in fact be supporting the legality of their actions and demanding that a commission be appointed to determine the legality of their occupation.