Reports that Governor Dayton's recount committee paid its legal team nearly $750,000 reminded me that I hadn't looked at July 2011 state party federal account reports at the Federal Election Commission online. While the state only requires an end-of-year report during off years, the parties report monthly to the FEC.
The DFL--which typically doesn't concentrate fundraising on its federal account during off years, Bluestem is told by a source familiar with the party's fundraising, is slowly paying down its debt. Here's the summary page:
Covering Period 06/01/2011 Through 06/30/2011
| Column A This Period |
Column B Year To Date |
|
| 6. (a) Cash on hand, January 1, 2011 | 47529.66 | |
| (b) Cash on hand at Beginning of Reporting Period | 50674.72 | |
| (c) Total Receipts (from line 19) | 196041.04 | 652944.91 |
| (d) Subtotal (6(b) + 6(c) for A, 6(a) + 6(c) for B) | 246715.76 | 700474.57 |
| 7. Total Disbursements | 206493.75 | 660252.56 |
| 8. Cash on Hand at Close of Reporting Period | 40222.01 | 40222.01 |
| 9. Debts and Obligations Owed TO the Committee | 0.00 | |
| Itemize all on SCHEDULE C or SCHEDULE D | ||
| 10. Debts and Obligations Owed BY the Committee | 291950.71 | |
That debt makes the party of the left look like pikers compared to the party of the failed burrito baron, Tony Sutton. MPR reports that the GOP isn't telling about its recount spending:
The Republican Party backed Emmer's recount effort. But it used a special account that is not subject to public disclosure. GOP officials have not voluntarily released any details.
And then there's this, the FEC report summary for the first month in which Sutton drew a paycheck from the grand old party:
Covering Period 06/01/2011 Through 06/30/2011
| Column A This Period |
Column B Year To Date |
|
| 6. (a) Cash on hand, January 1, 2011 | -31277.66 | |
| (b) Cash on hand at Beginning of Reporting Period | 3748.28 | |
| (c) Total Receipts (from line 19) | 209527.19 | 1155662.18 |
| (d) Subtotal (6(b) + 6(c) for A, 6(a) + 6(c) for B) | 213275.47 | 1124384.52 |
| 7. Total Disbursements | 221630.43 | 1132739.48 |
| 8. Cash on Hand at Close of Reporting Period | -8354.96 | -8354.96 |
| 9. Debts and Obligations Owed TO the Committee | 0.00 | |
| Itemize all on SCHEDULE C or SCHEDULE D | ||
| 10. Debts and Obligations Owed BY the Committee | 608147.51 | |
| Itemize all on SCHEDULE C or SCHEDULE D | ||
To recap, slightly twice debt of the DFL's federal committee, with a negative balance of $8354.96. Which is fully following the party's talking point of living within one's means.
An added bonus in the FEC reports? The mid-year report for the federal account for the House Republican Campaign Committee, a.k.a., the campaign wing of the House of Zellers.
It's quite legal for a state-level committee to set one of these up, the better to coordinate with campaigns for federal office like congressional candidates. Ian Marsh, who now serves as Zellers' legislative director, serves as treasurer of the committee, which was set up in August 2010. (All filings here).
Nearly all of the money received by the committee is from federal PACs, like the one run by the company formerly known as Philip Morse, now Altria, or like Express Scripts, the giant pharmacy benefit manager firm, which laid off 70 Minnesotans this spring when it sent their jobs offshore. At least there's money in the honey pot from Gopher State companies like 3M and the Minnesota Bankers PAC.
The PAC contributors:
See each report on where Marsh spends that money. Actually, the only expense in 2010 went to refunds to COLL PAC ($500) and Federal Express MN Fund ($2500). The biggest single disbursement so far is the transfer of $10802.50 to the Republican Party of Minnesota for a software license. The rest ($5975.95) went to the Kelly Inn for office space, to QWest for phone and Internet, and to U.S.Bank for copier rental.
It's unclear which federal campaigns the caucus campaign committee is coordinating with, but Bluestem imagines they're keep records somewhere.
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