A6
Politics & The Nation
EZ SU
KLMNO
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2010
MARK RALSTON/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE VIA GETTY IMAGES Contributions from labor unions and casinos have helped SenateMajority LeaderHarry M. Reid (D-Nev.) stay even in the polls with Republican challenger Sharron Angle. Republican candidates race ahead in third-quarter fundraising candidates from A1
million in the third quarter, re- cords show. The Republican equivalents raised less than $20million. J.B. Poersch, executive director
of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, said that despite Republican success in fundraising, “our supporters are making sure Democrats have the resources they need towage com- petitive races and ultimately keep Democrats in the Senate majori- ty.”
The new disclosures provide a
glimpse at an array of wealthy donors and interest groups that are driving the spending on this year’s elections. InColorado, for example, aVir-
ginia-based group called the First Amendment Alliance has raised about$200,000 fromahandful of Colorado energy, banking and media executives, including $50,000 from billionaire and longtime GOP donor Philip An- schutz, records show.The alliance has spent about the same amount on ads in Colorado attacking Sen. Michael Bennet (D), who is in a tight race with GOP candidate KenBuck. On the left, unions are also
Republican surge
Current Republican House candidates took the lead in fundraising for the first time in the period from July through September, in millions
Democrats
100 $120
20 40 60 80
0 2009
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 2010
Republicans
takingadvantageof looser restric- tions. In Nevada, the Patriot Ma- jority PAC, which has spent $1.5 million to help Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D), has receivedmost of its funding from labor unions and casinos, such as Harrah’s andMGMMirage. The money has helped Reid
stay even in the polls with GOP challenger Sharron Angle, whose campaign reported raising $14 million in the third quarter. Reid’s campaign said it raised $2.8millionduringthe sameperi- od.
The newly released records
cover a small slice of independent groups whose contributors must be publicly reported, including a new breed of organizations knownas “superPACs.”Manyoth- er organizations, including the Chamber and other business lob- bies, are set up as the type of nonprofits allowed to keep their donors secret. “Clearly what you’re seeing
with some of these reports is the tip of the iceberg,” said Meredith McGehee, policy director at the Campaign Legal Center, which advocates for increasedcampaign disclosures. “But even when you see the tipof the iceberg, youhave a pretty good idea ofwhat the rest of the iceberg is likely tolooklike.”
Familiar donors Many of the donors revealed in
the latest Federal Election Com- mission and Internal Revenue Service filings are familiar figures within political fundraising cir- cles. Houston home builder Bob Perry, the main funder for the “Swift Boat” attacks againstDem- ocratic presidential candidate John F. Kerry in 2004, has given $4million this year to the Repub- lican Governors Association (RGA), which can accept unlimit- ed contributions. Perry has also contributed to the First Amend- ment Alliance and American Crossroads,aleadingGOP-friend-
In key Senate races, many upstart GOP candidates outraised their Democratic rivals, including some incumbents, in millions.
Cash on hand on Sept. 30 COLORADO Ken Buck (R)
Sen. Michael Bennet (D)* DELAWARE
KENTUCKY MISSOURI NEVADA
Christine O'Donnell (R) Chris Coons (D) Rand Paul (R)
Jack Conway (D) Roy Blunt (R)
Robin Carnahan (D) Sharron Angle (R)
WASHINGTON
Sen. Harry Reid (D)* Dino Rossi (R)
Sen. Patty Murray (D)*
$1.1 1.0
2.6 1.3
1.4 1.0
3.7 2.0
4.1 4.0
3.5 1.2
$2.1 2.7
3.8 1.5
2.7 1.7
2.4 2.2
14.3 2.8
4.7 3.3
SOURCE: Federal Election Commission filings; the campaigns. NOTE: Totals show fundraising by current candidates only. If candidates who lost their primary are included in the totals, Republicans gain the edge in the second quarter. * Incumbent.
T.W. FARNAM AND NATHANIEL VAUGHN KELSO/THE WASHINGTON POST BY DAN EGGEN Concerned Taxpayers of Amer-
ica, one of the numerous political groups spending bigonthis year’s elections, appears to consist of two taxpayers in particular. Daniel G. Schuster Inc., a con-
crete firm in Owings Mills, Md., gave two donations to the group totaling $300,000, new disclo- sure records show. New York hedge fund executive Robert Mercer gave the group $200,000. And that’s the extent of the
financial support reported by Concerned Taxpayers, which says it was formed in September “to engage citizens from every walk of life and political affiliation” in the fight against “runaway spend- ing.” The group’s rapid creation —
and its narrow funding base — illustrates how one or two wealthy donors can have a dra- matic impact on political races, particularly in the wake of recent
Fundraising in 2010 3Q
ly group thatwas formedwith the support of former Bush adminis- tration adviserKarlRove. Other wealthy donors to the
Republican governor’s group in- clude hedge-fund manager Paul Singer, who gave $1.5 million in the most recent quarter; Las Ve- gas casino owner Sheldon Adel- son, with $1 million; and News Corp.,ownedbyRupertMurdoch, which has donated $1.25 million so far this year. All told, theRGApulledinmore
than$30millioninthethirdquar- ter, overwhelming the$10million raised by the Democratic Gover- norsAssociation.The fundraising will allow the GOP to outspend Democrats incrucialgubernatori- al races around the country,while also burnishing the rainmaker credentials of the RGA’s head, Mississippi Gov.Haley Barbour, a potential presidential candidate. Someindependentgroupshave
formed in recent weeks to focus on only one race. One called We Love USA, which is running ad- vertisements supporting GOP House candidate Allen West against Rep. Ron Klein (D-Fla.), listed Renee Kaufman, a home- maker from Schenectady, N.Y., as giving $50,000, the bulk of the group’s funding. Property records for the New
York address show the home is owned byDaniel andReneeKauf- man of Lighthouse Point, Fla., which is in the congressional dis- trictWest is seeking to represent. Daniel Kaufman is the owner of Reagan Wireless, which sells wireless equipment.
Incumbents fall behind Several incumbentDemocratic
senators were far outpaced by their GOP competitors. In Arkan- sas, Rep. John Boozman, who holds a double-digit lead in most polls, raised more than twice as much as incumbent Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D). Senatorial candidate Dino Rossi (R) of Washington
JAE C. HONG/ASSOCIATED PRESS GOPcandidates’ fundraising edge for the quarter improved the party’s chances of taking over theHouse.
state raised $4.7 million, about $1.4millionmore than Sen. Patty Murray (D).Polls showthat race is essentially tied. Democrats were also running
behind in races for some open Senate seats. InDelaware,Repub- lican Christine O’Donnell took in nearly $3.8 million from the last days of August until the end of September,more thanthree times asmuch as Democratic opponent ChristopherA.Coons. In Kentucky, GOP candidate
Rand Paul raised $2.7 million in the third quarter and has $1.4 milliononhandtospendbetween nowand the election.Democratic candidate Jack Conway raised $1.7million during the same peri- od and has $1million remaining. A handful of Republican stars
in the House raked in the biggest cash totals in that chamber. Rep. Michele Bachmann (Minn.)
raised $5.5 million, and House Minority Leader Rep. John Boeh- ner (Ohio) brought in $2.2 mil- lion. Boehner will probably be elected the next House speaker if Republicans take control of the chamber in November, as several independent experts predict. Even in races Democrats are
expected to win, enthusiasm among conservatives has helped Republicans raisemoney. In Cali- fornia, John Dennis raised $1.2 million for his campaign against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D- Calif.). Democrats point to several of
their Senate candidates who had good fundraising totals in the third quarter. Rep. Joe Sestak in Pennsylvania raised more than wasexpected—$3.3million,com- paredwith$3.7millionby conser- vative activist and former con- gressman Pat Toomey. Alaskan
Democratic candidate Scott Mc- Adams, the former mayor of the small town of Sitka, raised $650,000. Recent polls showMc- Adamswithinstrikingdistance in athree-wayracethatalsoincludes Republican nominee Joe Miller and incumbent Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R), who lost the pri- mary but has launched a write-in campaign. Republicans are poised to
make major gains in the House andSenateas the fieldof competi- tive races has grown recently. Handicappers nowsay that about 70 Democratic-held House seats are in play and as many as 13 Senate races. Republicans have much less threatened territory.
farnamt@washpost.com eggend@washpost.com
Staffwriter AaronBlake contributed to this report.
Concerned Taxpayers group is powered by only two donors
court rulings that have swept away many traditional spending limits. The situation also under- scores how the precise motiva- tions and goals of many indepen- dent groups can remain stub- bornly opaque, even when disclo- sure is required. The Concerned Taxpayers,
which lists a Capitol Hill town- house as its address, has spent $450,000 on television advertis- ing targeting just twolawmakers: Reps. Peter A. DeFazio (D-Ore.) andFrankM.Kratovil Jr. (D-Md.). When the group began target-
ing DeFazio several weeks ago, both he and his GOP opponent, tea party favorite Art Robinson, said they were unfamiliar with the group and were surprised by the ads. The organization is a “super
PAC” that can spend and raise unlimited funds, but it is not allowed to coordinate with cam- paignsandis required to report— eventually — its funders to the Federal Election Commission.
That deadline came Friday, when the group turned in reports list- ing Mercer and the Maryland concrete firm as its only two donors. Neither Mercer nor Daniel
Schuster, the concrete firm’s founder, could be reached for comment Saturday. Jason Miller, who is listed as the treasurer of Concerned Taxpayers of America, also could not be reached. DeFazio said in an interview
Saturday that he remains mysti- fied by the group’s attacksonhim, but noted that he co-sponsored legislation to levy a tax on major hedge-fund transactions. Mer- cer’s firm, Renaissance Technolo- gies, is one of the leading hedge- fund companies on Wall Street and would be dramatically affect- ed by such a proposal. “I have been one of the most prominent critics of Wall Street and tried to call them to account,” DeFazio said. “I’ve obviously made some powerful enemies.” Robinson said he is acquainted
with Mercer but had no idea he was connected to Concerned Tax- payers. His campaign has re- ceived $9,600 in donations from Mercer and his relatives, FEC records show. “I don’t know him very well,
but I do know him and I respect him,” Robinson said. “If he’s help- ing me in the campaign, then I’m grateful.” InMaryland, Schuster is listed
in FEC reports as the top contrib- utor to Kratovil’s GOP opponent, Andy Harris. Harris’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment. Jessica Klonsky, Kratovil’s campaign manager, said, “It’s no surprise that Harris’s top cam- paign contributor is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to repeat the same misleading attacks that are coming from the Harris campaign itself.”
eggend@washpost.com
Staff writer T.W. Farnam contributed to this report.
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