GOP’s Ability to Maintain Fiscal Discipline Reflected by the Party’s Handling of Funds

by Doubleplusundead | April 12, 2010 1:05 am

Unfortunately, that leads to little confidence in the GOP’s ability to roll back the massive expanses in government spending that were passed throughout the Bush and Obama administrations.:  The GOP seems to have an all-around chronic problem with embezzlement and mishandling of funds and resources of late.

The whole “Voyeur lesbian bondage club ‘scandal'”[1] was pretty minor in the broader scope of things, and frankly silly (however, I hear every use of the phrase lesbian bondage club gives a blog extra thousand visitors…lesbian bondage club!), but I do agree with Jim Treacher, who defended the Daily Caller’s role in breaking the story[2]. :  The Voyeur story is and was a worthwhile story, not so much for the fact that the fact that a bunch of GOP high rollers went to a trendy, risque nightclub in West Hollywood, (honestly, I think we should mellow on the moral police stuff, let liberal Nanny Staters be the obnoxious moral scolds, I wish the GOP would do more fun stuff like this) but for the GOP’s chronic inability to control its finances and message.:  Sadly, the $2K is a drop in the bucket compared to some of the other fiscal shenanigans and failures from the GOP.

The latest bit of GOP financial failure comes out of Florida, where it was revealed that $1.3 million in shady purchases were made on a Florida GOP Junior staffer’s party issued American Express card[3], both by her and other members of the Florida GOP.:  Much of that went to travel expenses, restaurants, hotels and luxury goods for former Florida House Speaker Ray Sansom and his family.:  Sansom is currently being prosecuted for sneaking a $6 million spending amendment into a bill to build a hangar at an airport for a friend and contributor’s personal use.

Of course, Sansom’s not the only GOP leader with a desire to live large on the GOP’s dime, Michael Steele and the RNC also seem to have a thing for spending lavishly on hotels, limos and private planes, Steele even looked into the viability of purchasing a private jet[4].: :  I understand that there are going to be expenses involved in luring big donors, but some of this seems excessive, especially considering how pissed off conservatives are at Democrats right now, and the mediocre fundraising the RNC has done[5] in light of that fact.

And this is a chronic issue with the GOP, let us not forget that in 2008 it we found out that Chris Ward, then treasurer of the NRCC had been busted for diverting hundreds of thousands of NRCC dollars into other accounts for his own benefit[6].:  In 2008, soon after the election, the campaign treasurer for former GOP Representative Chris Shays found accounting irregularities in their funds, it turned out that Shays’ campaign manager had embezzled roughly $200K[7].

We also have this accusation now from a former GOP staffer in Michigan[8], and if found true, is going to be a major political disaster.:  The accusation is that the Michigan GOP and the RNC coordinated with big GOP donors in Michigan to circumvent campaign finance laws.:  Donors are only allowed to give $10K to the state parties in an election cycle, but can give more to the RNC, who can then funnel the funds back to the Michigan GOP.:  This could have major consequences if investigated and found to be true.

There’s no way we can realistically expect the GOP to put up a serious offensive against the continued expansion of the federal government any time soon, they can’t even control their own spending and funds in the GOP campaign apparatus.:  As Michelle Malkin points out time and time again[9], the GOP can’t and won’t go after the Democrats and left in any kind of effective way until they get their house in order.:  Frankly, they need to stop having what is becoming the accounting equivalent of the Clintonian bimbo eruption. :  Until conservatives dislodge the current establishment, step up and step in, both as candidates and political operatives, the left is going to continue its relentless expansion of centralized power largely uninterrupted, and sometimes in coordination with the GOP.

You can read more of doubleplusundead and his cobloggers’ scribblings here[10].

Endnotes:
  1. “Voyeur lesbian bondage club ‘scandal'”: http://dailycaller.com/2010/03/29/fec-filings-rnc-money-spent-at-hollywood-bondage-club-by-poizner-consultant/
  2. who defended the Daily Caller’s role in breaking the story: http://dailycaller.com/2010/03/31/you-like-us-you-really-like-us/
  3. where it was revealed that $1.3 million in shady purchases were made on a Florida GOP Junior staffer’s party issued American Express card: http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/stateroundup/junior-florida-republican-party-staffer-had-13-million-charged-to-party/1086335
  4. Steele even looked into the viability of purchasing a private jet: http://dailycaller.com/2010/03/29/high-flyer-rnc-chairman-steele-suggested-buying-private-jet-with-gop-funds/
  5. the mediocre fundraising the RNC has done: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/04/08/2010-04-08_gop_boss_touts_fundraising_but_dems_steele_his_thunder.html
  6. had been busted for diverting hundreds of thousands of NRCC dollars into other accounts for his own benefit: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0308/9285.html
  7. had embezzled roughly $200K: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/01/nyregion/01shays.html
  8. also have this accusation now from a former GOP staffer in Michigan: http://dailycaller.com/2010/04/07/former-rnc-official-steele-struck-a-deal-with-michigan-gop-to-increase-fundraising-numbers-possibly-to-circumvent-federal-funding-limits/
  9. time and time again: http://michellemalkin.com/2010/03/29/rejected-rnc-solicitations-of-the-day/
  10. doubleplusundead and his cobloggers’ scribblings here: http://doubleplusundead.mee.nu/

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