Complaint filed over state GOP finances

A watchdog group wants a federal examination of financial reporting. But the party says it's an attack by a "Franken flunky."

17 Jul 2007 // A Washington-based government-watchdog organization filed a federal complaint Monday against the Minnesota Republican Party and its former treasurer alleging "multiple, egregious violations" of campaign reporting laws and regulations.

The complaint by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) will compel the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to investigate, said Melanie Sloan, executive director of the nonprofit group.

CREW's complaint was based on a confidential memorandum written in February to the state party's executive committee by its former finance director, Dwight Tostenson. The memo was made public by the Star Tribune on June 3.

Tostenson alleged that party chairman Ron Carey fired him after he repeatedly pressed the chairman to address serious financial problems in the state GOP office. CREW's complaint cites Tostenson's allegations that the party has failed to disclose debts exceeding $100,000 and failed to properly report delayed expense payments to staff .

State GOP spokesman Mark Drake said on Monday that the party is confident it's taking all necessary steps to comply with FEC regulations.

Drake also accused Sloan of being a shill for Al Franken, a DFL candidate for the seat held by U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman, a Republican. "This is obviously a politically motivated attack from a left-wing Al Franken flunky who is trying to silence the Republican Party of Minnesota," Drake said in an e-mail.

"CREW executive director Melanie Sloan is a former Democratic counsel for the House Judiciary Committee and a longtime Al Franken crony who has appeared on his show repeatedly to attack Republicans," Drake wrote. "Sloan was such a lackey on Franken's radio show that she was given her own theme music set to 'Bad to the Bone.' "

CREW charged that the Minnesota GOP was attempting "to prevent the public from knowing the true financial state of the Party prior to the 2006 election," and asked the FEC to conduct an audit and field investigation.

Sloan said the FEC might have investigated Tostenson's allegations based on the newspaper report, but it was not compelled to do so. CREW's complaint forces the issue, she said.

"The Republican Party out there ... absolutely is going to be answering some questions from the FEC now," she said.

Sloan acknowledged appearing on Franken's show before it went off the air. But she said CREW is a nonpartisan organization founded in 2003, which has filed complaints against both Republicans and Democrats, including Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa, and William Jefferson, D-La.

"We didn't write the confidential memo," Sloan said. "Somebody who works for the Republican Party of Minnesota did. We based our complaint explicitly on what the former staff member wrote."

FEC has issued audit warning

The FEC already has warned the state GOP that it could face an audit. In May, it sent the party a letter asking for additional information about several campaign disclosure statements that the party had amended in February, just weeks before its longtime treasurer, Marina Taubenberger, retired.

The party failed to provide the information by the FEC's June 4 deadline. An FEC spokesman said no extensions are allowed and cited an audit warning in the letter. Prompted by calls from reporters, the party sent a letter June 5 to the FEC saying it was conducting an internal audit and would provide the requested information later.

The FEC sent the party another letter on June 7 asking for additional information. The party responded a day before the July 10 deadline saying, "We are engaged in a thorough review of our financial activities during the time frame for these reports and anticipate filing amendments that will correct the issues raised."

A lawyer who specializes in FEC matters and helped CREW prepare its complaint said it could be a year or more before the FEC decides whether enough evidence exists to merit further action.