Posted on 04/26/2006 6:21:22 PM PDT by neverdem
Sen. Debbie Stabenow's campaign has corrected her campaign finance reports to show that some donations from 2002 and 2003 came from an Indian tribe then represented by now-disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, not an individual as she reported at the time.
Stabenow's campaign originally reported that $4,000 in donations came from Christopher Petras, who was the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe's legislative director at the time. The donations came during a period in which Stabenow and other Michigan lawmakers sought funding for the tribe and wrote letters to federal regulators on the tribe's behalf.
The campaign wrote the Federal Election Commission on April 14 to correct the report to show the donations came from the tribe. Records originally listed Petras as giving Stabenow's campaign $2,000 on March 6, 2002, and an equal amount on June 30, 2003. Copies of the checks showed the first was dated Feb. 20, 2002, and the second June 2, 2003.
Stabenow campaign manager Tom Russell said Wednesday the tribe made the contributions and the error was "a glitch in filing the report which was corrected" as soon as it learned of the problem. He said the computer system attached Petras' name to the donations because he was listed as a contact for the tribe.
The wealthy Mount Pleasant, Mich., tribe, which operates a casino, contributed $308,980 during the 2002 campaign cycle and $564,480 during the 2004 campaign, according to campaign finance watchdog group PoliticalMoneyLine.com.
The tribe received $3 million in funding approved in November 2003 to build a school on the reservation. Earlier this month, tribal leaders asked that the funding be redirected to other federal programs.
Abramoff, who pleaded guilty in January to federal charges of conspiracy, tax evasion and mail fraud, turned to Republicans, including Sen. Conrad Burns of Montana, to overcome the Bush administration's objection to providing the school funding for the tribe.
Stabenow, Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., and Rep. Dave Camp, R-Mich., wrote the Interior Department on Jan. 23, 2003, and again on July 14, 2003, regarding the funding. The tribe made campaign donations to the three lawmakers, but they have said there was no connection between the letters and the donations.
Burns has said he acted at the Michigan lawmakers' request and wasn't influenced by Abramoff. His campaign has returned or donated to charity about $150,000 linked to the lobbyist.
Brian Nick, a National Republican Senatorial Committee spokesman, said it appeared that "Stabenow received thousands of dollars just before taking actions on behalf of a close associate of convicted felon Jack Abramoff, and now years later has gone back and doctored her campaign report in an attempt to avoid scrutiny."
ping
DS is just Levin light (and his big projected shadow).
Thanks for the ping. Debbie speaks with forked tongue.
She's a member of The Democratic Crime Syndicate tribe.
She should be George Ryan's roommate at the greybar hotel.
Is this a Hillary style non-disclosed correction or a Hillary style non-denial denial, or a Gore style no controlling legal authority, etc. denial?
Her tribal name is Walking Eagle, it means bird too full of it to fly.
You wouldn't know it from this article. If I'm reading correctly, nowhere does it say she's a Dem .
AHA! I just went to the link and it's not a Forbes story...it's the AP, of course!
Why should a wealthy indian tribe with a casino get taxpayer money for any reason?
Stabenow campaign manager Tom Russell said Wednesday the tribe made the contributions and the error was "a glitch in filing the report which was corrected" as soon as it learned of the problem. He said the computer system attached Petras' name to the donations because he was listed as a contact for the tribe.
It's the programmer's fault. What's the big deal? Didn't the dog ever eat your homework?
Et tu, Stab-me-now?
Amazing. No comment whatsoever about Hillary's greatest of all campaign finance fraud.
Michigan should get rid of this incompetent sow.
Brian Nick has received messages from me three days in a row about Hillary's greatest of all campaign finance fraud without returning the call. If you would like to call him, the number for the National Republican Senatorial Committee is 202.675.6000. Let me know if you reach him.
Stabenow's campaign originally reported that $4,000 in donations came from Christopher Petras, who was the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe's legislative director at the time. The donations came during a period in which Stabenow and other Michigan lawmakers sought funding for the tribe and wrote letters to federal regulators on the tribe's behalf... Stabenow campaign manager Tom Russell said Wednesday the tribe made the contributions and the error was "a glitch in filing the report which was corrected" as soon as it learned of the problem... Stabenow, Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., and Rep. Dave Camp, R-Mich., wrote the Interior Department on Jan. 23, 2003, and again on July 14, 2003, regarding the funding. The tribe made campaign donations to the three lawmakers, but they have said there was no connection between the letters and the donations... Brian Nick, a National Republican Senatorial Committee spokesman, said it appeared that "Stabenow received thousands of dollars just before taking actions on behalf of a close associate of convicted felon Jack Abramoff, and now years later has gone back and doctored her campaign report in an attempt to avoid scrutiny."Y'think?
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