Josh Israel: “A Republican who raised tens of thousands of dollars to run against House Intelligence Committee Chair Adam Schiff in California has switched races and will now challenge first-term Texas Democratic Rep. Colin Allred.”
“While campaign finance laws allow federal candidates to change federal races and bring along their campaign war chest, it is unusual for a candidate to move to an entirely different state.”
“A prolific political fundraiser who donated large sums to President Trump’s inaugural committee is expected to plead guilty to federal criminal charges.” the AP reports.
“The Justice Department says Imaad Zuberi will admit in federal court in Los Angeles that he falsified records to conceal his work as a foreign agent while lobbying high-level U.S. government officials.”
“Elizabeth Warren’s presidential campaign will no longer accept contributions of more than $200 from executives at certain tech companies or financial firms, her latest move to keep big business at bay,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Her new pledge comes after she swore off big fundraisers. It adds to a debate among Democrats about whether the party’s White House nominee can take on President Trump with primarily small contributions.”
Rudy Giuliani reportedly had lunch with Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman at Trump International Hotel in Washington yesterday, the same day that they were arrested on campaign-finance charges, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Prosecutors said at a press conference that Parnas and Fruman were attempting to leave the country when they were arrested at Dulles International Airport.
“Two foreign-born donors to a pro-Trump fundraising committee who helped Rudy Giuliani’s efforts to investigate Democrat Joe Biden were arrested late Wednesday on criminal charges of violating campaign finance rules,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, two Florida businessmen, have been under investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan, and are expected to appear in federal court in Virginia later on Thursday… The men’s nationalities were unclear, though both were believed to have been born in former Soviet republics.”
USA Today reports both men were scheduled to be deposed this week by the three House committees leading the impeachment probe.
A federal jury found two longtime Democratic operatives guilty of funneling illegal corporate campaign contributions into Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes’ 2014 U.S. Senate campaign — including former Kentucky Democratic Party Chairman Jerry Lundergan, the father of Grimes — delivering another blow to a significantly weakened Kentucky Democratic Party, the Lexington Herald Leader reports.
“Kansas Republican congressional candidate Amanda Atkins may have skirted federal election law by representing herself as a candidate before filing the appropriate paperwork,” McClatchy reports.
Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) “argued to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday that filing campaign finance forms is a legislative act — immune from federal prosecution by constitutional separation of powers protections,” the San Diego Union Tribune reports.
“If his argument is successful, the case against him could ultimately be dismissed prior to trial that’s supposed to start Jan. 14 as Hunter prepares to run for re-election in a March primary election.”
Authorities are investigating whether someone stole more than $100,000 from Rep. Steve Chabot’s (R-OH) reelection fund, Roll Call reports.
“A company owned by the wife of Brad Parscale, President Trump’s campaign manager, has received hundreds of thousands of dollars from the President’s flagship political action committee, which is barred from coordinating with the campaign,” CNN reports.
“Brad Parscale and his wife both insist their arrangement is legitimate and that there is no coordination.”
“During his final two years in office and for several months afterward, former Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-FL) paid a Miami dentist and childhood friend with no political experience nearly $400,000 for political consulting,” the Miami Herald reports.
“And since losing his seat last November, he’s spent thousands of dollars from his leadership PAC — called ‘What a Country!’ — on wine and high-end restaurants.”
“Now, Curbelo’s friend, JP Chavez, is his business partner in a communications and public affairs startup venture called Vocero LLC.”
“The Feds are looking into possible campaign finance misdeeds by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s chief of staff and lead rainmaker, who suddenly resigned Friday,” federal sources told the New York Post.
“The inquiry centers on two political action committees founded by Saikat Chakrabarti, the top aide who quit along with Ocasio-Cortez spokesman Corbin Trent.”
Daily Beast: “By putting off the payments until then, Klobuchar was able to put the best possible spin on her presidential campaign’s financial position during the previous three months. If those expenses had come a day earlier, Klobuchar’s cash on hand figure would have been roughly $6.35 million. Instead, the campaign was able to claim roughly $7 million in reserves—a sum that placed her among the better-positioned Democrats in the presidential race.”
“A Daily Beast review of campaign finance records indicates that the delayed-expenses strategy has continued through the just completed cycle, and has involved payments to campaign staffers as well.”
“Klobuchar, whose campaign did not respond to multiple requests for comment, is one of at least four Democratic presidential candidates who appear to have skipped a staff payday at the end of June, putting off that pay period until the beginning of the following month and hence transferring the expense to the next quarter’s balance sheets.”
“A federal investigation into whether Trump Organization executives violated campaign-finance laws appears to be wrapping up without charges being filed,” CNN reports.
“In January, one month after Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison, prosecutors requested interviews with executives at the company… But prosecutors never followed up on their initial request, people familiar with the matter said, and the interviews never took place.”
“Republicans are set to launch a long-awaited, much-delayed online fundraising platform on Monday, a move aimed at closing Democrats’ massive small-donor money advantage ahead of the 2020 election,” Politico reports.
“WinRed is being billed as the GOP’s answer to the Democratic Party’s ActBlue, which has already amassed over $174 million this year. The new tool is intended to reshape the GOP’s fundraising apparatus by creating a centralized, one-stop shop for online Republican giving, which the party has lacked to this point.”
“Federal prosecutors have stepped up a criminal investigation into possible efforts by longtime Republican fundraiser Elliott Broidy to profit from his connections to the Trump administration,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Investigators are examining whether Mr. Broidy, a top fundraiser for Mr. Trump in 2016 who was later tapped as deputy finance chairman of the Republican National Committee, was paid by his intelligence-contracting firm’s foreign and prospective clients to give them special access to attend the 2017 inauguration, some of the people said. Such activity could violate campaign-finance, lobbying or money-laundering laws.”
“MJ Hegar, candidate for U.S. Senate and mother of two young kids, has asked the Federal Election Commission for approval to spend campaign donations on child care as she seeks to oust Sen. John Cornyn,” the Dallas Morning News reports.
“Cornyn weighed in Friday with the commission — offering his ‘full support.'”
“Although Elton Gallegly (R) hasn’t been a congressman for years, he has more than $120,000 in campaign funds left, and federal regulators want to know if some of the money has been spent for personal use,” the Ventura County Star reports.
“At issue is money paid to his wife for managing the leftover funds and money spent on printing.”
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
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