Updated: Conservative Texas businessman financing attacks on Kaine
Mail piece funded by Independence Virginia PAC
A wealthy Texas home-builder is the primary underwriter of a political action committee that is producing television and radio ads and direct mail pieces attacking Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Tim Kaine.
Bob Perry, who has donated large sums of money to conservative causes, gave $1 million to Independence Virginia PAC in the three-month period that ended Sept. 30, according to the groups report filed with the Federal Election Commission. That represents nearly all of the $1,087,500 the “super PAC” raised during the period, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.
The group so far has spent nearly $300,000 on radio ads opposing Kaine, $160,000 for television spots and $134,000 for mail pieces, according to VPAP. Kaine is running against Republican George Allen for the Senate seat now held by Democrat Jim Webb.
Perry, who lives in Houston, was a major funder of the 2004 Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, an independent group that launched controversial ads attacking Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry. He also contributed $80,000 to Gov. Bob McDonnell’s 2009 campaign and another $125,000 to McDonnell’s political action committee, according to VPAP.
The super PACs make up just part of the outside spending aimed at influencing the outcome of the Senate and presidential elections in Virginia. Tax-exempt groups that are not required to disclose their donors also are pouring millions of dollars into advertising, much of it negative.
Kaine’s campaign singled out another donor to Independence Virginia PAC for criticism. Wyoming businessman and Christian conservative Foster Friess, who gave $10,000 to the super PAC, has made public statements that reflect “intolerant views,” Kaine said.
“We should all agree that out-of-state contributions from individuals like Foster Friess should have no influence in this race. Mr. Friess has spoken on the need for ‘more intolerance.’ He suggested that President Obama should invest in a ‘bulletproof teleprompter.’ And, in an interview with (NBC’s) Andrea Mitchell in February of this year, he ridiculed the need for contraception, suggesting that women just put aspirin between their knees.”
Kaine called on Allen “to reject the intolerant views of Foster Friess and ask Independence Virginia to return his contribution.”
Allen campaign spokeswoman Emily Davis accused Kaine of playing both sides of the fence when it comes to independent expenditure advertising. She noted that Kaine’s campaign was openly promoting a new ad by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee attacking Allen’s economic plan.
“It’s pretty hypocritical for Tim Kaine to launch attacks on outside spending when labor unions, radical environmentalists and Washington Democrats are bankrolling his message,” Davis said.
– Michael Sluss
October 15, 2012 - 8:21 AM
While VA Gov, Kaine went AWOL to be Obama’s DNC Chairman. Based on that malfeasance alone, I hope every businessman in the country supports Allen.
The Election: The Gathering Storm
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http://roanokeslant.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-gathering-storm.html
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Another good reason to vote for Kaine. A Texas egomaniac supports Allen.
Can’t we just unload Texas on Mexico? That worthless state does nothing but kick out crap that hurts the rest of the country.
Go Bob Perry, and thanks…Because it literally makes them boil…for some strange reason…donations are part of the process, on both sides.
At least we know he is a US citizen.
If you have to enter a CVV code to order a bumper sticker, why doesn’t the same apply to donations??? Donor fraud at it’s best.
#3…I see Kristen is in favor of just dumping what she percieves as `trash` onto Mexico….What does that say about how this liberal percieves the Hispanic people? We know whats in your hearts, and so often on your lying lips.
Well, Kristen ? And, lookie here…its Gdud again coming in at #2…You would need a good reason to vote for Kaine…If you could find one.
Sleezebag. All these people who fund these superpacs on both sides are sleezebags. I dont care what the law says it is not our founding fathers intent.
Hey RT
Who is paying for the ads attacking Allen?
Oh that’s right. You aren’t allowed to investigate that. It might hurt your party’s chances in the election.
Kaine was AWFUL for Virginia as governor, and basically shirked his duties in the end to go be a mouthpiece for the Obama campaign. Why on earth would anyone vote for this loser to represent us in the senate?
@Henry:
Here’s a link with info on three of the outside groups funding ads attacking Allen: the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, the Majority PAC and Service Employees International Union Committee on Political Education.
And here’s a link to a post Mike Sluss wrote about one of the outside attacks.
– Mason Adams
#3 “The Austin area is often nicknamed “Silicon Hills” because of the concentration of semiconductor design companies including Silicon Laboratories and AMD. Dell’s headquarters is located in the city’s suburb, Round Rock, and major offices for Google, Facebook, EA Games, and Apple are also open in the Austin area. Austin is also the home of the Texas Advanced Computing Center at The University of Texas at Austin which houses the world’s fastest supercomputer”
“The defense/military industry is the second largest sector of the Texas economy, trailing behind the petroleum and gas industry”
You know what they say, “Don’t mess with Texas”.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Texas
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As Massachusetts Governor, Romney Was Often Away
BOSTON — When the ceiling collapsed in the Big Dig tunnel here, Gov. Mitt Romney was at his vacation home in New Hampshire. When the Bush administration warned that the nation was at high risk of a terror attack in December 2003, he was at his Utah retreat. And for much of the time the legislature was negotiating changes to his landmark health care bill, he was on the road.
During Mr. Romney’s four-year term as governor of Massachusetts, he cumulatively spent more than a year — part or all of 417 days — out of the state, according to a review of his schedule and other records. More than 70 percent of that time was spent on personal or political trips unrelated to his job, a New York Times analysis found.
Mr. Romney, now the Republican presidential nominee, took lengthy vacations and weekend getaways. But much of his travel was to lay the groundwork for the presidential ambitions he would pursue in the 2008 election, two years after leaving office.
During his last year as governor, he was largely an absentee chief executive. In October 2006, for example, he was out of the state all or part of 25 days. His public schedules said he was spending “personal time in Utah” or “attending political events” in California, Colorado, Iowa, Michigan, Nevada, Texas and Wisconsin. He went to a fund-raiser on Oct. 6 in Georgia for the Republican candidate for lieutenant governor, stumped on Oct. 12 for a candidate for governor in Pennsylvania and appeared on Oct. 31 in Idaho on behalf of another candidate. In December, his last month in office, he took a swing through Asia before vacationing in Utah.
Yep this is definitely a Republicon’s idea of working hard! Why don’t you just call George W.???
3 – Texas “hurts the rest of the country”?
Oh please. How will all your beloved liberal entitlement programs be funded without the federal tax revenue provided by economically strong conserative states like Texas?
Be careful what you wish for.
#12 “The defense/military industry is the second largest sector of the Texas economy,>..”
IOW, sucking at the government teat.
Really, TOR? Think again.
http://stonesoup.wordpress.com/2011/06/07/federal-funding-received-by-state-per-dollar-sent/
As the list tells us, Texas gets back $.94 in federal dollars for every $1.00 in revenue it sends up. New Jersey, meanwhile, nets a mere $.64 from every dollar in federal revenue it generates. In fact, the blue states are the ones giving more than they’re getting. Red states, meanwhile, are cleaning up across the board. So I guess you can thank liberal America.
#10 More detail. I keep hearing that Kaine was awful for Virginia, but no specifics.
When you got nothing, shoot the messenger. Typical Henry.
If read the information below, you will understand that the emails sent from our Consulate in Benghazi had started our military response, orders were given to stand down, our military leaders tried to help anyway, and they have now been fired by Obama, or someone just below him.
The Full Story on Benghazi, our Military Response, Security, and Obama
http://strategicthought-charles77.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-full-story-on-benghazi-our-military.html
Call me crazy, but I do not believe a blogger is going to have “The Full Story on Benghazi, our Military Response, Security, and Obama”. And I pity someone who believes they do.
@ Charles Hill – they thougth they could keep this one under wraps until after the election.
The bar is low, Sandi.