With a notable lack of fanfare, expenditure, and impact, Mayday PAC has finally begun to dip a toe into support for a Democratic congressional candidate: Arizona's Ruben Gallego (D; AZ-07), thus far delivering a whopping 62 pairs of eyeballs to its endorsee's campaign. Perhaps Mayday's apparent lack of enthusiasm for its candidate has something to do with Gallego's record of opposition to public campaign financing (see update, below). Oops.
Lawrence Lessig's $12 million Mayday PAC (to end all SuperPACs) was stunningly quick to fill its war chest via small online donations from liberal supporters plus matching funds from mostly Democratic million- and billionaires. But watching it ramp up to actually spend that loot in support of its endorsees has, so far, been a lot like watching paint dry...only slower.
Last week we reported Mayday's first FEC-recorded independent expenditure, a $143K radio ad buy in support of Mayday-endorsed right-wing extremist Jim Rubens (R; NH-Sen). And not a minute too soon, what with Rubens' Sept. 9th primary against carpetbagger Scott Brown (R) fast approaching.
But among Mayday's current crop of five endorsees (two Republicans and three Democrats, with a promised threatened three additional endorsements yet to come) there is yet another candidate facing an imminent primary: Arizona's Ruben Gallego, squaring off against a slate of fellow Democrats in the August 26th primary including fellow Hispanic, Mary Rose Wilcox. If Mayday's support for Gallego's bid is to have any meaningful impact, the PAC needs to start spending on him yesterday (to say the least).
Both Gallego's and Wilcox's Democratic bona fides seem sound. Gallego served as assistant minority leader for one term in AZ's House of Representatives, has served as vice chair of the Arizona Democratic Party, supports college affordability and protecting the social safety net, and opposes climate change and unfettered gun rights. EMILY's List-endorsed Wilcox, a restaurant owner and former county supervisor, sounds even more progressive, supporting women's and LGBT rights, the Affordable Care Act, raising the Federal minimum wage, the DREAM Act, and a pathway to citizenship. So why has Mayday picked a dog in this fight? Because "Gallego supports the Government by the People Act [....] a system of elections in which candidates who choose to accept only small donations receive matching funds." And Mayday is all about supporting candidates who have said something nice about campaign finance reform.
Lately, the Gallego/Wilcox contest hasn't been pretty. Grasping for something bad to say about Wilcox, the Gallego campaign has latched onto the fact that Wilcox is paying the IRS back taxes on an installment plan:
"If Mary Rose Wilcox wants to represent us in Congress, she should start by paying her own taxes," said Ruben Alonzo, Gallego's campaign manager. "Wilcox owes the IRS more than $50,000 in unpaid taxes and penalties yet thinks she should decide how to spend our tax dollars."
Sam Castañeda Holdren, spokesman for the Wilcox campaign, explains that "like many family-owned businesses, Mary Rose Wilcox's restaurant business weathered tough times due to the recession. And they were nearly forced into bankruptcy by [Maricopa County] Sheriff Joe [Arpaio] and [former County Attorney] Andy Thomas' trumped-up charges. Wilcox is paying her taxes to the IRS on schedule."
Wilcox's vocal opposition to Arpaio's anti-immigrant policing policies, racial-profiling raids and roundups in Latino neighborhoods and at local businesses did put her in the sheriff and now-disbarred county attorney's cross hairs [....] She just received a more than $1 million settlement from Maricopa County for the political persecution.
Castañeda Holdren says in his retort to Gallego's tax attack that it's "unfortunate" that "Gallego has decided not to pay Social Security taxes for his campaign employees."
Indeed, Gallego has paid a mere fraction in payroll taxes during his congressional campaign. By designating all but a couple of his campaign staff -- including nearly all of his field workers -- as contractors and paying them "stipends," he avoids having to pay taxes, including those that feed into Social Security and Medicare.
A nasty, distracting tiff, which it seems
Gallego may have started with the apparent hyperbole that
"Wilcox [...] refuses to pay her own taxes." Democrat-on-Democrat violence: a perfect playground for a little Mayday mischief.
So, other than putting up a Gallego page on its web site, how is Mayday supporting Gallego? Thus far, as quietly as possible. On August 13, Mayday uploaded to YouTube a thirty-second video in rather bland support of Gallego. As of this morning (Aug. 19) that video has enjoyed a whopping 62 views. Also as of this morning, the Federal Election Commission's database reports no Mayday airtime buy yet for this or any other Gallego ad (although I suspect that's coming).
A day late, a dollar short, and sticking its out-of-state nose into family feuds: "That's My Mayday!"
4:18 PM PT: Hat tips to commenters Chiltepin and fsb19, below, who point out that in 2011 Mayday-endorsed Ruben Gallego voted with the Republican majority FOR Arizona SCR1025 (the "Stop Public Money for Political Candidates' Campaigns Act"), which sought to overturn AZ's much-admired Citizens Clean Elections Act that provides public funding of AZ state candidates' campaigns. Thus, with its endorsement of Gallego, Mayday PAC finds itself yet again in an "ironic" position -- this time supporting a candidate who is on record opposing public campaign financing.
Progressive state blog Arizona Eagletarian said, regarding lawmakers such as Gallego who supported the Stop Public Money for Political Candidates' Campaigns Act:
If they told the truth, which is to allow more unfettered influence of corporate lobbyists on the Arizona legislature, they know Arizona voters would defeat the measure in a heartbeat. The bottom line is that if approved, this would completely kill Clean Elections in our state.
If you just can't figure this out either, please join us in tweeting the hashtag #LessigWTF.
Wed Aug 20, 2014 at 5:38 AM PT: As of Aug 20, the FEC independent expenditure database reports an $81K online ad buy in support of Ruben Gallego by Mayday PAC.