We have a news flash for you: politicians accept campaign donations.
We hope you were sitting down when you read this.
But wait, there’s more.
They even accept them from businesses.
Oh, the horror.
This breaking news was recently brought to the public’s attention by Joel Connelly, a columnist for SeattlePI.com who uncovered the fact that Attorney General Rob McKenna has accepted an in-kind donation from Honda Auto Center of Bellevue for the use of a car in his campaign for governor.
Connelly apparently sees a conflict of interest here since he wrote, the Attorney General’s office investigates auto dealers “for deceptive advertising practices, dishonest promotions or hidden costs… .”
Well, sure, and the AG does so of every other business or individual in the state, if necessary.
Connelly went on to note that the AG’s office recently announced eight settlements with car dealers over advertisements that allegedly violated the state’s consumer protection laws. And, he did add that Honda Auto Center of Bellevue wasn’t one of those dealers.
But, he adds, “appearances count: The fact that McKenna gets free use of a car, supplied by a business he regulates, is somewhat unsettling.
We’d like to think Connelly’s writing was sharp, investigative reporting, but it smacks of partisan mud-slingling.
Democratic Party chairman Dwight Pelz quickly jumped on the issue to condemn Republican McKenna, who is running for governor.
“This is part of a developing pattern in which the Attorney General is willing to cozy up to campaign backers at the expense of the consumers he is charged with protecting,” Pelz said.
Really?
First, even Democrats admit that it’s perfectly legal for candidates to accept campaign donations – cash or in-kind – from businesses. But surprisingly, both Connelly and Pelz somehow failed to report that former Attorney General Chris Gregoire, a Democrat, (yes, the same Chris Gregoire who is now our governor), did the same thing by accepting the use of a campaign car in 2004 from Dwayne Layne Everett Dodge.
Even more interesting is the failure to mention King County Councilman Bob Ferguson, a Democratic who wants to replace McKenna as Attorney General, has received total of $6,400 from Honda of Seattle and Toyota of Seattle.
In the interest of keeping things fair, let us note that Republican Reagan Dunn, also running for Attorney General, has received a total of $9,600 from Tacoma Dodge Chrysler Jeep, Auburn Chevrolet, and Enumclaw Chrysler Jeep Dodge.
Connelly and Pelz know that in-kind use of the car is subject to the same limits as any campaign donation. Once the limit is hit, the campaign must pay the tab out of its own pocket.
The campaign for Jay Inslee, a Democrat who is running for governor, said that it leases a Toyota Prius, but it is paid for by general campaign donations, not for an in-kind donation. We assume that Inslee’s campaign hasn’t or won’t accept any money from car dealers at all. If so, a suspicious person might wonder if it, too, helps defray the cost of using the car.
Perhaps that’s something Connelly can investigate. Or not.
– Craig Groshart, Bellevue Reporter
