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“People who have more money should be free to buy more cars, more homes, more vacations, and more gizmos than the rest of us. They should not be able to buy more democracy." -Bill Moyers |
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For Immediate Release: June 11, 2005 Schwarzenegger Reins in Maverick Fundraiser, Pressure from TheRestofUs.org Helps Lead to Return of Tainted Donations Responding to pressure from watchdog group TheRestofUs.org, Governor Schwarzenegger has ordered chief fundraiser Marty Wilson to return $10,000 in contributions to scandal-ridden Ohio coin collector Tom Noe, who gave $10,000 to Schwarzenegger’s California Recovery Team in March 2004. While Governor Schwarzenegger made the right call in returning the cash, his massive fundraising from wealthy interests continues to contradict his attempts to label himself a reformer, according to the group. “We applaud the governor for overriding Marty Wilson’s refusal to return money very likely stolen from the people of Ohio,” said Ned Wigglesworth, analyst for TheRestofUs.org. “But as long as the governor sticks with his strategy of bankrolling his agenda with fat contributions from financial heavyweights, Californians won’t buy into his reform shtick.” Noe’s handling of a $55 million investment for the Ohio Worker’s Compensation Bureau is the subject of several state and federal investigations after his lawyers told investigators that some $10-12 million of the investment was missing. Prior to the governor stepping in, Wilson had repeatedly refused to return the money, despite the fact that President Bush and many Ohio officials had returned political donations from Noe. This release and prior comments by TheRestofUs.org can be found at http://www.therestofus.org/newsreleases/index.html. #-#-#
TheRestofUs.org is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization
working to make democracy work for ordinary citizens. TheRestofUs.org
is involved in campaign finance ballot measures in Oregon and
Ohio and independent redistricting policy in California, Florida,
and Ohio. We will soon file an amicus brief asking the U.S.
Supreme Court to review and uphold Vermont’s mandatory spending
limits. We also support federal efforts to eliminate the 527
loophole for soft money electioneering.
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