Kerry shows two facets of fundraising
Kerry shows two facets of fundraising
The subject of campaign finance has been a double-edged sword for Democratic Sen. John Kerry. He has criticized the system and supported reforms, but he also has faced questions about his ties to some of his donors.
But while raising $34 million for four Senate races and $23 million in donations through Dec. 31 for his presidential run, he has drawn scrutiny multiple times for his ties to corporate interests.
In 1998, Taiwanese-American businessman Johnny Chung pleaded guilty to using "straw donors" to funnel $8,000 to Kerry and $20,000 to President Clinton's re-election campaign. Kerry denied knowledge of the scheme and returned the money.
In 2002, a conspiracy indictment against a California military contractor included similar charges relating to $13,000 of more than $26,000 company executives gave Kerry in 1996 and 1998.
Kerry currently serves on the Senate Commerce, Finance and Small Business committees, all fertile turf for raising campaign cash. In its newly published book, "The Buying of the President 2004," the nonpartisan Center for Public Integrity says companies with a direct interest in Kerry's committee work "have pumped millions of dollars into his campaigns."
The center cited Kerry's receipt over his career of:
- $230,000 from Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, a Boston law firm where his brother, Cameron, works. The center said Kerry has sided with Mintz, Levin's long list of telecommunications and cable television lobbying clients on numerous occasions.
- $182,387 from FleetBoston Financial Corp., a Boston banking colossus formed in the 1999 merger of Fleet Financial Corp. and BankBoston. The merger, which Kerry supported over the objections of Boston's mayor, led to the layoffs of 3,000 workers.
- $140,710 from Time Warner, the giant media concern that owns Internet giant America Online.
The Boston Globe reported that when Kerry bought a Washington townhouse in 1986, a subsidiary of Fleet Financial gave him a $473,000 mortgage, more than double the home's value.
Should he win the Democratic nomination, those and other appearances of cozy connections could make it difficult for Kerry to paint President Bush as the candidate of special interests.
Can you actually trust this 'real deal'?