Wiggle Room?
Politics or charity? Donations questionedBy MONI BASU
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 05/14/04
What's wrong with Georgia's corporate leaders trying to raise money for an Atlanta charity that benefits kids with cancer? Plenty, if you ask Melanie Sloan, head of a Washington watchdog agency. She filed a complaint seeking to pull the plug on an event sponsored by AFLAC, the Columbus-based insurance giant, and Southern Co., the Atlanta utility conglomerate, that she called "shameful abuse" of children's charities.
The companies have signed on at $100,000 apiece to sponsor "Rocking the Apple . . . Georgia Style," a concert in New York City during the Republican National Convention, Aug. 30-Sept. 2. U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) and other influential Republican lawmakers are scheduled to attend. Chambliss, designated as host of the event, said the concert was not a ruse and could raise as much as $250,000 for Camp Sunshine, an organization that allows children with cancer to sail boats, ride horses and spend time with one another.
Sloan said she has no problems with a children's charity benefiting from corporate donations. But when she learned the concert would bring together big donors and lawmakers, she grew suspicious. New campaign fund-raising laws placed a ban on "soft money" — unregulated contributions from corporations, labor unions and individual donors. The aim was to prevent large donors from buying access to federal elected officials.
"I think what we have is AFLAC wanting to have an event at the convention and realizing the best way to do it is to have a charity as a front," said Sloan, director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. In what she called a disturbing new trend, charities have become a way for politicians to skirt the new restrictions, she claims.
"The main issue is that it's exploiting charities for politician gain," said Sloan, who filed complaints with the Senate Ethics Committee against Chambliss and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.). She also filed a complaint against Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.), who had agreed to host a similar fund-raiser at the Democratic Party's convention in July. The Democrats' event has since been canceled.
Sloan's complaint suggests that the charity events could violate Senate rules that bar members from soliciting contributions for charities from lobbyists. It contends that the events also violate Internal Revenue Service regulations that prohibit charities from participating in political events on behalf of, or against, a candidate.
"The use of charitable organizations — by both Democrats and Republicans — to finance convention events is a reprehensible misuse of charities [and] reflects poorly on the Senate as well as the charities involved," the complaint states. Organizers said neither of the events is political in nature and both are intended to raise money for their respective charities.
Two other watchdog agencies, Democracy 21 and Common Cause, have raised concerns about a weeklong event scheduled during the Republican convention and coordinated by House Majority Leader Tom DeLay of Texas. A $500,000 gift to Celebrations for Children buys the donor a private dinner with DeLay, Broadway theater tickets, a cruise on a yacht, a luxury suite to listen to President Bush's acceptance speech at Madison Square Garden and several other perks.
After the event's costs are deducted, proceeds would be used by the charity, which is affiliated with DeLay, to fund a facility for disadvantaged children in Texas. "The more money you pay, the more access you get," said Mary Boyle, spokeswoman for Common Cause. "DeLay's charity is the one that causes us the greatest concern because it was established for the sole purpose of funding the week in New York."
Led by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.), Congress in 1995 passed a gift ban intended to prevent special interest groups from wining and dining lawmakers. But Boyle said charities remain a gray area for politicians. "We think it's good when members of Congress help a charity," Boyle said. "But the concern here is that charities are being used by wealthy people to gain access to Congress. And that's not good."
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posted by Richard at
Saturday, May 15, 2004
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