One of the more interesting races to watch in Michigan is in the 1st house district where Democratic Congressman Bart Stupak's departure from the seat he has held since 1993 has left Republicans heavily targeting the district as one they believe can definitely swing to their side.
Recent polls show the race a dead heat between Democratic State Representative Gary McDowell and Republican Dan Benishek, with both picking up around 41% of the votes, while independent candidate Glenn Wilson trails with roughly 8% of the vote.
With less than a week until election day this race is definitely up for grabs, and today's announcement of a Federal Election Commission complaint being filed by the Michigan Democratic Party against Benishek's campaign shows the level of interest this campaign is getting.
The complaint stems from a post on Benishek's Facebook page that showed a photo of a small, private airplane on a runway with the caption "Headed out to the Home Show in Munising. See ya there!" According to new campaign laws adopted into rule by the FEC in January, travel by any candidate for Congress on a non-commercial airplane is no longer allowed. The rule reads:
"Travel by or on behalf of House candidates and their leadership PACs. Except as otherwise provided in paragraphs (e) and (g) of this section, a campaign traveler who is a candidate for election for the office of Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, the Congress, or a person traveling on behalf of any such candidate or any authorized committee or leadership PAC of such candidate, is prohibited from non-commercial travel on behalf of any such candidate or any authorized committee or leadership PAC of such candidate."
Prior to the rule being adopted, candidates used to be allowed to fly on private airplanes provided the campaign reimbursed the owner for the cost of the flight. This, again, is specifically forbidden under the new FEC rules.
"New 11 CFR 100.93(c)(2) prohibits House candidates, and individuals traveling on behalf of House candidates, their authorized committees or leadership PACs, from engaging in non-commercial campaign travel on aircraft. This prohibition cannot be avoided by payments to the service provider, even by payments from the personal funds of a House candidate."
So, was Benishek using the private plane as part of his campaign work against FEC rules? His own spokesperson doesn't seem to deny it.
"Our review of the candidate's travel since March suggests two flights which, although arguably personal in nature, may need to be reimbursed at a commercial charter rate," said Trent Benishek, the Benishek committee spokesman. "The candidate has never run for office before, and our operation was not aware of the recent change in regulations regarding air travel, and consequently may have inadvertently erred in this regard. In an abundance of caution, our accountant is contacting the FEC to correct any reporting errors. We will take all steps necessary to ensure full compliance with reporting and reimbursement requirements."
Ignorance of the law is generally not a good excuse, and suggesting that the campaign may need to reimburse the plane's owner shows they still haven't read the rules which state that reimbursement doesn't fix the problem. They're acknowledging the campaign violated the rule, but are suggesting a remedy that itself is also a violation.
Benishek is a wealthy physician who certainly should have been able to afford legal council to explain the FEC rules that govern travel by a Congressional candidate. To have him either intentionally violating or completely ignorant to a basic campaign rule may raise concerns in voters minds about placing him in charge of the lawmaking process.
Whether this claim ultimately has any effect in the election remains to be seen, but with the race as close as it is, even if it only sways a few voters to McDowell's side, then it could certainly have an influence on whether this district stays in Democratic hands.