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Announcement :: Elections & Legislation |
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A Victory for Integrity |
Current rating: 0 |
by MDP
(No verified email address) |
27 Jul 2005
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The Missouri Ethics Commission announced that they have referred a complaint filed against Gov. Matt Blunt for violating Missouri's campaign finance laws to the Attorney General's office. This marks a dramatic victory for Missourians and the role of integrity in government. |
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The Missouri Democratic Party filed this complaint after learning that Matt Blunt had failed to report an illegal in-kind contribution of a tour bus to his campaign by Mike Kehoe. Only after the MDP reported this violation did Blunt's campaign pay for the use of the bus. Unfortunately, they decided to pay for just a third of the bus's fair market value, again constituting an wrongful in-kind contribution well above the amount that individuals are allowed to contribute to candidates.
So, just what did Mike Kehoe get in return for his largesse to Blunt's campaign? Your governor appointed him to the Missouri Highway Commission. This case is just one more example of the apparent quid pro quos for campaign contributions that have become standard operating procedure under Matt Blunt:
Blunt named a convicted thief as Missouri's top business recruiter after she helped raise thousands for his campaign
Blunt let special interests choose his cabinet, even letting the insurance industry hand pick the state's insurance watchdog
Blunt handed out license fee offices to numerous donors
Blunt and the Republicans have tried to disparage the efforts by the MDP to expose this pattern of payoffs as just politics as usual. But they couldn't be more wrong. The Ethics Commission's decision to refer this case to the Attorney General for is believed to be the first time since the Commission was formed in 1993 that it has found such probable cause to refer an ethics complaint against a sitting governor.
The MDP believes that integrity in government is critical for the public to trust their elected officials. The people of this state deserve an open and honest government that acts in their best interests.
And where is Matt Blunt today? According to the Republican Governor's Association, he's in Idaho for a two-day thank you to special interests who have given generously to the help elect Republicans -- including $2,500,000 to Blunt in 2004.
"It's fitting that on the very day the Ethics Commission announces they have found probable cause to refer an ethics complaint against Matt Blunt for prosecution, that Gov. Blunt and his chief of staff are in Sun Valley, Idaho thanking political contributors," said MDP spokesman Jack Cardetti. "Clearly, this is an administration that shows little regard for ethical guidelines and acts as if they are above the law."
Press Release: Commission Refers Ethics Complaint against Matt Blunt for Prosecution |
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