Top state GOP officials didn't OK fund-raiser letter
Posted on 01/04/2003 6:56:36 AM PST by MeekOneGOP
Top state GOP officials didn't OK fund-raiser letter
Perry, others plan to attend, but organizers admit misusing names
01/04/2003
AUSTIN - The state's top elected officials distanced themselves Friday from an aggressive fund-raising appeal by a conservative think tank closely tied to one of their major campaign donors.
Gov. Rick Perry, Lt. Gov.-elect David Dewhurst and House Speaker-apparent Tom Craddick, all Republicans, said they plan to attend the event, but each said he did not agree to have his name used in a fund-raising letter the Texas Public Policy Foundation mailed to several hundred lobbyists.
A Dec. 16 mailing by the foundation seeks donations of up to $100,000 to defray costs of an upcoming four-day conference styled as an orientation session for state lawmakers. The letter notes that the event has the blessing of Mr. Perry, Mr. Dewhurst and Mr. Craddick.
A reservation form attached to the letter ties the event more closely to the three politicians.
"I would like to make a donation in support of Gov. Perry, Lt. Gov.-elect Dewhurst and State Rep. Craddick's 78th Legislature Policy Orientation presented by the Texas Public Policy Foundation," the form says, next to a check-off box urging tax-deductible contributions.
Kathy Walt, a spokeswoman for Mr. Perry, said he plans to attend the conference, "but that's the extent of it. ... He's not fund-raising for them. We were not aware that the letter was going out. No one ran it by our office for review."
Mr. Craddick and Mr. Dewhurst also issued statements praising the foundation but saying they didn't approve use of their names in the fund-raising letter.
Michael Quinn Sullivan, the foundation's director of media and government relations, who signed the letter, said the think tank erred in using the officeholders' names.
"We dropped the ball," he said. "We messed up on this. They were not consulted."
The foundation was created in 1989 by Dr. James Leininger, a San Antonio businessman and philanthropist. Dr. Leininger is the godfather of the school voucher movement in Texas and has donated millions to state Republican candidates in recent years.
The foundation's researchers have criticized social studies textbooks used in public schools for over-emphasizing the civil-rights movement and past racial discrimination. They contend that history books underplay the contributions of white, Christian Europeans.
Mr. Sullivan said he expects "a significant majority of both bodies" of the Legislature to attend the event at an Austin hotel Jan. 29-30 and Feb. 3-4.
"There's obviously a lot of expense to bringing in policy experts from around the country," Mr. Sullivan said. The event will cost between $300,000 and $400,000 to stage, he said.
In an earlier letter mailed by the foundation, Mr. Perry, Mr. Dewhurst and Mr. Craddick urged lawmakers, their staff members and lobbyists to attend the conference.
The event is open to the public, Mr. Sullivan said.
But it costs $2,500 per person to eat the meals and attend all the VIP receptions associated with the event, he said.
E-mail rtgarrett@dallasnews.com
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.