Washington voters are reminded once again this week of the political scandal that bit him back during his second failed run for governor in 2008. At the time, the Building Industry Association of Washington’s (BIAW) was found guilty of multiple and "egregious" campaign finance violations on Rossi's behalf. The Republican state attorney general accused the organization of illegally concealing $584,000 in campaign donations. These allegations came to a head in September and October of 2008, when Rossi was forced to testify about the illegal campaign coordination with the BIAW.
Rossi was eventually cleared, but the BIAW was not, and now it has to pay up.
An arm of the Building Industry Association of Washington agreed Friday to pay $242,000 in fines to settle a lawsuit over its one-year delay in reporting campaign money raised in 2007 to aid Dino Rossi’s most recent run for governor.
The state Attorney General’s Office announced the $584,000 settlement, which included a suspension of $342,000 in fines if BIAW’s Member Services Corporation avoids campaign-finance violations through 2016....
The original case against BIAW was spurred by a complaint by two retired former state Supreme Court justices with Democratic ties. They argued through their attorney, Knoll Lowney, that BIAW’s Member Services Corporation should have registered as a political committee.
Aaron Ostrom of the liberal activist group Fuse worked with Lowney and Justices Faith Ireland and Robert Utter in bringing complaints against Rossi and BIAW to light in 2008, including Lowney putting Rossi under oath in a deposition during the campaign.
Ostrom lauded the settlement and the size of the fine.
“I think it sends a pretty clear message that BIAW’s big dance with Dino wasn’t legal,” he said. “I think the size of the fine sends that message. Also, the timing is a little inauspicious for the favored son. (Builders) are his best friend and his worst enemy.”
What the settlement will serve to do, just weeks before the election, is to reinforce why Washingtonians don't much like Rossi--almost every poll shows high unfavorable ratings for him. They don't trust him.