"RNC donation raises questions on federal monitoring"

[texpatriot2004]

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2005/10/01/rnc_donation_raises_questions_on_federal_monitoring/

Boston Globe

RNC donation raises questions on federal monitoring

By Michael Kranish, Globe Staff | October 1, 2005

WASHINGTON -- At the same time that House majority leader Tom DeLay allegedly conspired to send $190,000 in corporate money through the Republican National Committee to candidates for the Texas Legislature, one of DeLay's former aides was making an even larger donation to the Republican Party. It was a donation of $500,000, and the GOP promptly wrote a check for a similar amount to the Republican candidate for Alabama governor.

<snip>

[cynatnite]

1. Fucking fantastic and nominated!! n/t

[Scout1071]

2. It's time to take a look at all of the RNC's transactions.

How in the hell could the Governor of Alabama not report a $500,000 donation due to a clerical error? Does he just get so many donations of that size that it's hard to keep track of them all?

Great find. Thanks for posting.

[barbaraann]

3. The scale of GOP money laundering in Ohio is in the BILLIONS.

So, yeah, maybe he did just overlook the $500,000.

[Scout1071]

7. Anyone know how to find a list of donations to the AL Governor?

Seems like I'd sure as hell remember someone giving me $500K.

[barbaraann]

8. Well, here's this.

http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/geog.asp?CID=N00003071&cycle=2002

[barbaraann]

9. And this:

http://arc-sos.state.al.us/CGI/SOSELC11.mbr/output?P01=0030255

[texpatriot2004]

10. Who is the AL Gov ? n/t

[barbaraann]

11. Bob Riley

n/t

[Wilms]

4. kick n/t

[The Backlash Cometh]

5. We had that kind of shit happening in Florida.

Only it was the real estate market that was laundering the money.

On a small scale, I thought it was peculiar when our city commission voted to give a citizen businessman $500.00 for no real reason at all. It was only later when I realized that he was part of a 4 person buddy group who had contributed small amounts to everyone's campaign. It wouldn't have surprised me at all if it was pre-arranged that he would disperse this money back to "the boys."

[Snotcicles]

6. Lets shake the trees and see all the rotten fruit fall. n/t

[texpatriot2004]

12. Let's do. I am certain we will find fruit in every practically every

state of the "Union" (are we united yet?).

[Snotcicles]

13. I sure f-in hope so.

[Greyhound]

14. Any hope the M$M will stay on this?

K&R anyway. :kick:

[texpatriot2004]

15. more of this article here

This second case suggests that the funneling of large amounts of money through national committees to bypass state campaign-finance laws may be more widespread, raising questions about whether federal officials have monitored such transfers as closely as is now being done by a Texas prosecutor in the DeLay case, according to watchdog groups.

Indeed, the groups maintain that officials, especially those at the Federal Election Commission, routinely fail to investigate questionable transactions. ''The limits are constantly being tested because people operate on the assumption that the enforcement agency isn't going to do anything about it," said Fred Wertheimer, president of Democracy 21, which wants stricter campaign finance laws.

<snip>

Just a few weeks after DeLay's Texans for a Republican Majority sent its $190,000 check to the RNC, one of DeLay's former aides, Michael Scanlon, showed up at the Republican Governors Association with checks totaling $500,000.

Scanlon was working with Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff on behalf of Indian gaming tribes. Abramoff was recently indicted on charges of conspiracy and wire fraud, and Scanlon and Abramoff are under investigation for fraud in connection with their lobbying for the tribes.

One of Abramoff's top clients was a Mississippi Indian tribe, the Choctaws, which hoped to stop or slow the expansion of legalized gambling in neighboring Alabama. Shortly after Scanlon delivered the $500,000 from his company, Capitol Campaign Strategies, the Republican Party sent $600,000 to Bob Riley, the Republican candidate for governor of Alabama. Riley opposed the expansion of gambling and thus was favored in the election by the Choctaws. Scanlon, in addition to having once worked for DeLay, also had once worked as a staff member for Riley.

Riley won the election, defeating Governor Don Siegelman, who favored an expansion of legalized gambling. ''It looks to me that somebody wanted to hide where this money was coming from," Siegelman said of the $500,000 that went to his rival.

''It is similar" to the DeLay case, said Melanie Sloan, director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, arguing that that donation's purpose, as in the DeLay case, was to bypass state laws.

<snip>

Unlike the DeLay case, no charges have been made against Scanlon and he has not spoken about the details of the transaction. Scanlon's lawyer, Stephen Braga, said he could not comment because the matter is under federal investigation.

<snip>

Initially, the RGA did not report that it had received the $500,000. The donation was not made public until April 2003, long after Riley won the election. The RGA has said the failure to report Scanlon's donation was a bookkeeping error. A Riley spokesman could not be reached for comment.

The money transfer to the Riley campaign followed earlier efforts by the Choctaws to try to stop legalized gambling in Alabama.

[hootinholler]

16. Smell that?

I think it smells like RICO.

-Hoot

[texpatriot2004]

17. RICO...(takes a big whiff) yes it does smell like RICO. n/t

[rainbow4321]

18. More funneling and Abramoff contributions?

http://www.beyonddelay.org/beyond_delay/rep_roy_blunt_r_mo


Family connections have also helped Rep. Blunt’s son, Missouri Governor Matt Blunt, who received campaign contributions from nearly three dozen influential Missouri lobbyists and lawyers when he ran for governor of Missouri in 2004, half of whom had provided financial support to his father.

In 2000, when Matt Blunt was running for Secretary of State, Rep. Blunt was involved in an apparent scheme to funnel money through a local party committee into Matt Blunt’s campaign committee. Committees tied to Rep. Blunt contributed $90,000 to the 7th District Congressional Republican Committee which, in turn, contributed $76,000 to Matt Blunt’s campaign committee. In addition, Altria – the company for which Blunt’s wife is the top lobbyist – made a $24,000 contribution to Matt Blunt’s campaign, and a $100,000 contribution to the 7th District Congressional Republican Committee.
------------------------------
Legislative Assistance for Jack Abramoff’s Client

Rep. Blunt and his staff have close connections to uber-lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who is the subject of criminal and congressional probes. In June 2003, Mr. Abramoff persuaded Majority Leader Tom DeLay to organize a letter, co-signed by Speaker Hastert, Whip Roy Blunt, and Deputy Whip Eric Cantor, that endorsed a view of gambling law benefitting Mr. Abramoff’s client, the Louisiana Coushatta, by blocking gambling competition by another tribe. Mr. Abramoff has donated $8,500 to Rep. Blunt’s leadership PAC, Rely on Your Beliefs.

If, as it appears, Rep. Blunt was accepting campaign contributions from Mr. Abramoff in exchange for using his official position so support a view of gambling law that would benefit Mr. Abramoff’s client, he would be in violation of the law.

[texpatriot2004]

19. more of the article here

This second case suggests that the funneling of large amounts of money through national committees to bypass state campaign-finance laws may be more widespread, raising questions about whether federal officials have monitored such transfers as closely as is now being done by a Texas prosecutor in the DeLay case, according to watchdog groups.

Indeed, the groups maintain that officials, especially those at the Federal Election Commission, routinely fail to investigate questionable transactions. ''The limits are constantly being tested because people operate on the assumption that the enforcement agency isn't going to do anything about it," said Fred Wertheimer, president of Democracy 21, which wants stricter campaign finance laws.

<snip>

Just a few weeks after DeLay's Texans for a Republican Majority sent its $190,000 check to the RNC, one of DeLay's former aides, Michael Scanlon, showed up at the Republican Governors Association with checks totaling $500,000.

Scanlon was working with Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff on behalf of Indian gaming tribes. Abramoff was recently indicted on charges of conspiracy and wire fraud, and Scanlon and Abramoff are under investigation for fraud in connection with their lobbying for the tribes.

One of Abramoff's top clients was a Mississippi Indian tribe, the Choctaws, which hoped to stop or slow the expansion of legalized gambling in neighboring Alabama. Shortly after Scanlon delivered the $500,000 from his company, Capitol Campaign Strategies, the Republican Party sent $600,000 to Bob Riley, the Republican candidate for governor of Alabama. Riley opposed the expansion of gambling and thus was favored in the election by the Choctaws. Scanlon, in addition to having once worked for DeLay, also had once worked as a staff member for Riley.

Riley won the election, defeating Governor Don Siegelman, who favored an expansion of legalized gambling. ''It looks to me that somebody wanted to hide where this money was coming from," Siegelman said of the $500,000 that went to his rival.

''It is similar" to the DeLay case, said Melanie Sloan, director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, arguing that that donation's purpose, as in the DeLay case, was to bypass state laws.

<snip>

Unlike the DeLay case, no charges have been made against Scanlon and he has not spoken about the details of the transaction. Scanlon's lawyer, Stephen Braga, said he could not comment because the matter is under federal investigation.

<snip>

Initially, the RGA did not report that it had received the $500,000. The donation was not made public until April 2003, long after Riley won the election. The RGA has said the failure to report Scanlon's donation was a bookkeeping error. A Riley spokesman could not be reached for comment.

The money transfer to the Riley campaign followed earlier efforts by the Choctaws to try to stop legalized gambling in Alabama.

[texpatriot2004]

20. I suppose this RNC kind of thing is going on all over the country?