Eighteen year candidate Dino Rossi, who has benefitted from the most secret, non-disclosed money of any candidate this year, received a $5,000 donation from the Citizens United Political Victory Fund. (Report of Receipts and Disbursements, “Rossi for Senate,” July 29, 2010 through September 30, 2010) The PAC is affiliated with the same Citizens United that is named in the Supreme Court case that overturned longstanding campaign finance laws on the limits of corporate donations.
Rossi has a close connection to the Citizens United case. His former lawyer, James Bopp Jr., was the mastermind of the Citizens argument. Bopp is perhaps the country’s most well-known opponent of campaign finance disclosure requirements. Bopp’s ironically-named “Committee for Truth in Politics” that has never disclosed a single donor aired an attack ad against Patty Murray on Rossi’s behalf earlier this year.
“Nondisclosure, secrecy and a lack of transparency are pretty much par for the course for Dino Rossi. It took Dino months to admit that he opposed the DISCLOSE Act. Meanwhile, he has been getting a bigger boost from secret, non-disclosed money than any other candidate in the country. Washington state voters deserve a Senator who is on their side, fighting for increased transparency and accountability,” said Sadie Weiner, Communications Director for the Washington State Democrats.
10/27/10
