Pardon my ignorance, but why is this a crime? Politicians pay for endorsements all the time. How many times do democrats “contribute” to black church leaders to get their support?
I still remember Sen Jon Corzine buying the support of a black church when he ran for governor of NJ. He was caught on tape coaching them about the endorsement.
“...After Sorenson publicly switched his endorsement, Pauls campaign routed the state senator a total of $73,000 in 2012, transferring the payments through a film production company and another company to conceal the intended recipient, according to court filings. Sorenson wanted the payments kept secret because of Iowa Senate ethics rules that prohibit sitting senators from accepting payments from a political campaign, according to court papers....”