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MNGOP: THE KELLIHER RECORD PART I

By Luke Hellier | December 15, 2009

KELLIHER EMBROILED IN CAMPAIGN FINANCE SCANDAL

Kelliher “Under Fire” Over Effort To Circumvent State Campaign Finance Laws

Star Tribune: Kelliher Is “Under Fire From Democrats And Republicans For A Deal With Her Party That May Trigger A State Campaign Finance Investigation.” “Margaret Anderson Kelliher, speaker of the Minnesota House and a leading DFL gubernatorial candidate, is under fire from Democrats and Republicans for a deal with her party that may trigger a state campaign finance investigation.  The Minnesota GOP filed a formal complaint against Kelliher on Friday for her arrangement to have donors pay the DFL directly for access to a prized voter list. Three donors wrote checks for $500 apiece to the DFL in September.”  (Rachel E. Stassen-Berger & Pat Doyle, “Sweetheart deal for voter list from DFL may sting Kelliher,” Star Tribune, December 11, 2009)

• “Should the state board investigate, Kelliher may face prolonged scrutiny at a time when she is trying to win over potential delegates in a tough endorsement fight. Other DFL candidates have signaled party favoritism may taint the endorsement process, which could pave the way for multiple primary challenges.  The $1,500 contributed to the DFL on Kelliher’s behalf may violate prohibitions on earmarking party donations and may have broken the law on campaign contribution limits.”  (Rachel E. Stassen-Berger & Pat Doyle, “Sweetheart deal for voter list from DFL may sting Kelliher,” Star Tribune, December 11, 2009)

Pioneer Press: “At Issue Are Donations Made On Behalf Of Kelliher, Apparently After Her Campaign Reached Its Limit For Nonelection-Year Donations. Money Was Given To The DFL, Bypassing Kelliher To Help Buy A Pricey Database — Called A Voter Activation Network, Or VAN — Of Democratic Voters For Her Campaign’s Use. Both The Kelliher Campaign And The DFL Said The Money Has Since Been Returned.” (Jason Hoppin, “Kelliher in middle of campaign funding flap,” Pioneer Press, December 10, 2009)

Executive Director Of The Minnesota Campaign Finance And Public Disclosure Board Gary Goldsmith: “‘If There’s A Coordination Like That, It Would Still Be Considered A Contribution To A Candidate.” “The Kelliher campaign asked individuals to help buy the VAN, which one source said costs $13,000. [DFL Chair Brian] Melendez wouldn’t confirm that figure but said it was ‘in the ballpark.’  Such coordinated donations should count against a candidate’s fundraising cap.  ‘If there’s a coordination like that, it would still be considered a contribution to a candidate,’ said Gary Goldsmith, executive director of the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board.  The donations also may run afoul of state rules against ‘earmarked’ donations, or donations made to a campaign committee with the express or implied purpose of being redirected to a specific candidate.”  (Jason Hoppin, “Kelliher in middle of campaign funding flap,” Pioneer Press, December 10, 2009)

Minnesota Public Radio: “The Issue Speaks To The Credibility Of The Kelliher Campaign.” “Drip, drip drip…  There’s more information coming out regarding DFL House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher’s fundraising problems. On Friday, Kelliher said three donors helped her pay for the use of the DFL voter file. But on Monday, DFL Party Chair said three people had their money refunded. He said Kelliher claimed credit for a total of seven donors for the file. Kelliher’s campaign manager told the Star Tribune that the other donors gave $6,000 to help Kelliher. The Campaign Finance Board will figure this all out.  This isn’t a ton of money in the world of campaign finance laws but the issue speaks to the credibility of the Kelliher campaign.”  (Tom Scheck, “The Daily Digest,” Minnesota Public Radio, December 15, 2009)

Kelliher Scheme Unravels

Kelliher Donor Richard Ginsberg:  Kelliher Campaign Manager Jaime Tincher Told Me To Give DFL Money For Kelliher Purchase Of Voter Activation Network. “One person who participated in the arrangement was Richard Ginsberg, a lobbyist who said he did so because he had already given Kelliher’s campaign committee the maximum individual contribution of $500. Ginsberg said Tincher told him he could further help Kelliher by giving money to the DFL for her purchase of their Voter Activation Network, used to identify likely Democratic supporters.”  (Rachel E. Stassen-Berger & Pat Doyle, “Sweetheart deal for voter list from DFL may sting Kelliher,” Star Tribune, December 11, 2009)

• “‘Jaime and the campaign brought up the ability to send money to the party,’ Ginsberg recalled Friday. ‘They said you could donate to the party for … they called it the VAN, it’s a voter file.  Jamie brought up the point that people could contribute to the party for the purposes of getting this voter file, which of course would have been for Margaret.’”  (Rachel E. Stassen-Berger & Pat Doyle, “Sweetheart deal for voter list from DFL may sting Kelliher,” Star Tribune, December 11, 2009)

DFL Party Contradicted Kelliher Story

DFL Credited Kelliher For Total Of Seven Donations, Not Three. “The DFL Party’s executive director sent a letter today to the Minnesota Campaign Finance Board detailing his involvement in the fundraising flap regarding Minnesota House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher’s campaign for governor. On Friday, Kelliher said she made a mistake by directing donors to give to the DFL Party to help pay for her access to the party’s voter database. Kelliher said the party learned the process was illegal and returned $1,500 in contributions.  What we didn’t know until today is that the DFL Party credited Kelliher for four other unnamed contributors. DFL Party Chair Brian Melendez said the party asked those contributors if they wanted a refund as a result of the mistake. He said they told him they operated under the assumption that the money was for the DFL Party, not Kelliher’s access to the database.”  (Tom Scheck, “The other contributors,” Minnesota Public Radio, December 14, 2009)

Kelliher Earlier Claimed Only Three Donors Gave To DFL On Her Behalf. “Kelliher said her campaign directed three donors to give to the DFL Party to help her pay for using the party’s voter database, after getting party approval to do it. Party attorneys later said the donations were illegal and returned $1,500 in contributions to the donors. She said three people, Ruth Usem, Blanche Hawkins and Rich Ginsberg contributed $500 each to the party on Kelliher’s behalf. Kelliher said Ginsberg, a lobbyist for several groups including the Mille Lacs Band of the Ojibwe and Hennepin County, already gave the maximum contribution of $500 to Kelliher’s campaign.”  (Tom Scheck, “Kelliher to file letter with Campaign Finance Board admitting ‘mistake.’” Minnesota Public Radio, December 11, 2009)

• “On Friday, when news broke about the deal, Kelliher said only three donors were involved, each giving $500 in what amounted to a partial payment for Kelliher’s access to a party voter database. But on Monday, DFL Party Chairman Brian Melendez acknowledged that the party had credited four other donations to the database payments. Kelliher campaign manager Jaime Tincher said those donors contributed a total of $6,000, which was credit to Kelliher’s payment. Tincher said the campaign only knew about the three donors last week.”  (Rachel E. Stassen-Berger, “4 more donations add to Kelliher controversy,” Star Tribune, December 15, 2009)

Fellow DFL Gubernatorial Candidates Blasted Kelliher’s Arrangement With DFL

Sen. Tom Bakk: “I Don’t Think It’s Legal.” “‘I think there’s some questions to be asked,’ said state Sen. Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook, one of Kelliher’s rivals. ‘Number one, I don’t think it’s legal. But also it seems like one candidate is getting preferential treatment.’” (Jason Hoppin, “Kelliher in middle of campaign funding flap,” Pioneer Press, December 10, 2009)

• “Fellow DFL gubernatorial candidates say they are disturbed by the party’s arrangement with a single candidate.  ‘I just want a fair process,’ said Sen. Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook. ‘And right now I just have some questions as to whether it is or not,’ he said. ‘It’s pretty troubling.’”  (Rachel E. Stassen-Berger & Pat Doyle, “Sweetheart deal for voter list from DFL may sting Kelliher,” Star Tribune, December 11, 2009)

• “State Sen. Tom Bakk said he was required to pay for the database in full, upfront.  ‘We just want to be treated like everyone else,’ he said. ‘It’s pretty apparent to me that’s not the case. The question is: What else don’t we know?’”  (Brian Bakst, “Campaign finance error dogs Minn. House speaker, Associated Press, December 11, 2009)

Sen. John Marty:  “The Laws Are Pretty Explicit About No Earmarking Of Contributions.  You Can’t Do Anything Like It.” “A leading candidate for Minnesota governor tried Friday to contain fallout after she and the state Democratic Party admitted their arrangement for supplying her with a voter database likely violated campaign finance laws.  House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher, one of 11 vying for the Democratic nomination, reported the possible violation to state campaign regulators just as Republicans were filing a formal complaint. The Democratic chairman, meanwhile, sought to reassure the other candidates that party officials were not taking sides. …  ‘The laws are pretty explicit about no earmarking of contributions,’ Sen. John Marty said. ‘You can’t do anything like it.’”  (Brian Bakst, “Campaign finance error dogs Minn. House speaker, Associated Press, December 11, 2009)

• “‘If the allegations are true it’s really upsetting,’ said state Sen. John Marty, DFL-Roseville, who is making his second run for governor. ‘The issue would be the party playing favorites, but also it’s apparently a campaign violation. … Why in the heck would somebody think that that’s OK to do?’ ‘Disappointing’ would be a modest word,” he added.” (Jason Hoppin, “Kelliher in middle of campaign funding flap,” Pioneer Press, December 10, 2009)

• “‘I can’t think of any reason you would say “If you want to help me give it to somebody else,’” Marty said. ‘The only reason I can think one wants to do that is if they’re approaching the limits on how much we can accept from that source of money. In other words, to circumvent the contribution limits and that’s what I’d be extremely concerned about.’”  (Tom Scheck, “Opponents taking issue with Kelliher campaign move,” Minnesota Public Radio, December 10, 2009)

Rep. Paul Thissen:  “It’s Really Important That Everybody Is Playing By The Same Rules In This Campaign, And The Fact That It Looks Like That Hasn’t Been The Case Is Concerning To Me.”  “State Rep. Paul Thissen, a DFL gubernatorial candidate who, like Kelliher, is from Minneapolis, said that ‘it’s really important that everybody is playing by the same rules in this campaign, and the fact that it looks like that hasn’t been the case is concerning to me.’”  (Rachel E. Stassen-Berger & Pat Doyle, “Sweetheart deal for voter list from DFL may sting Kelliher,” Star Tribune, December 11, 2009)

• “State Rep. Paul Thissen said party officials and Kelliher’s campaign should have known better.  ‘It’s the responsibility of both Speaker Kelliher and the party to play by the rules,’ Thissen said. ‘I hope going forward that we have a fair process because that’s what the people deserve.’” (Tom Scheck, “Opponents taking issue with Kelliher campaign move,” Minnesota Public Radio, December 10, 2009)

Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner:  “I Don’t Think It Takes A Rocket Scientist Or Even A Lawyer To Know That If What We’ve Heard Is True It’s Probably A Violation Of The Law.” “Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner, another DFL candidate, said the arrangement raises legal questions.  ‘We don’t have all the facts, but I guess we know enough to wonder: What the heck were they thinking? I don’t think it takes a rocket scientist or even a lawyer to know that if what we’ve heard is true it’s probably a violation of the law,’ Gaertner said.”  (Rachel E. Stassen-Berger & Pat Doyle, “Sweetheart deal for voter list from DFL may sting Kelliher,” Star Tribune, December 11, 2009)

• “Another candidate, county prosecutor Susan Gaertner, added: ‘I’m scratching my head at the notion that anybody would think this is OK. We’re not talking about newbies to the process.’” (Brian Bakst, “Campaign finance error dogs Minn. House speaker, Associated Press, December 11, 2009)

Entenza Campaign:  Arrangement “Compromised The Integrity Of The DFL.” “Dana Houle, DFL candidate Matt Entenza’s campaign manager, said the arrangement ‘compromised the integrity of the DFL.’”  (Rachel E. Stassen-Berger & Pat Doyle, “Sweetheart deal for voter list from DFL may sting Kelliher,” Star Tribune, December 11, 2009)

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