Thursday, December 18, 2003
Dining for Donors?
Not too long ago, Willard Mitt dropped the hammer on designer party organizers who had been using the State House as a function hall. In order to help pay for facility “upkeep,” Team Reform implemented a user fee, and began charging as much as $4,650 for events in the Great Hall, on the Grand Staircase and in other historic rooms in the State House.
The genesis of this cash grab was … the FY2004 budget, which was signed by the no-tax (fraud) governor, himself. (source: Boston Globe, 8/30/2003)
Now when you think of historic rooms in the State House, do you think of the Governor’s office? Maybe. Especially the mahogany conference table that Gov. Weld’s former speechwriter used back in the early 1990s. (source: Bostonmagazine.com, 6/2003)
So if you wanted to have a breakfast to thank your friends and supporters, and you wanted to use the Governor’s office, do you think you’d be charged an “upkeep” fee?
We ask because … we hear things. And according to a tip to the Rat Line, the Fraud Governor may have recently held breakfast receptions in his State House office to thank campaign donors.
Now, we doubt the Fraud Governor would be so … foolish … as to hold a fund-raiser in his office. But would he hold a campaign thank-you there?
If so, would it be sanctioned by the Ethics Commission? And if so, would his campaign have to pay an “upkeep” fee?
According to the Office of Campaign and Political Finance, Team Reform paid for catering services on November 14, November 18, and November 19. Could these dates correspond to gubernatorial breakfast receptions? There are no corresponding “upkeep” payments. So perhaps our information is but a bad rumor.
Perhaps.
Then again, perhaps someone should FOIA Team Reform’s November/December calendar pages and guest logs. And ask for an Ethics Commission ruling.
Perhaps.
Not too long ago, Willard Mitt dropped the hammer on designer party organizers who had been using the State House as a function hall. In order to help pay for facility “upkeep,” Team Reform implemented a user fee, and began charging as much as $4,650 for events in the Great Hall, on the Grand Staircase and in other historic rooms in the State House.
The genesis of this cash grab was … the FY2004 budget, which was signed by the no-tax (fraud) governor, himself. (source: Boston Globe, 8/30/2003)
Now when you think of historic rooms in the State House, do you think of the Governor’s office? Maybe. Especially the mahogany conference table that Gov. Weld’s former speechwriter used back in the early 1990s. (source: Bostonmagazine.com, 6/2003)
So if you wanted to have a breakfast to thank your friends and supporters, and you wanted to use the Governor’s office, do you think you’d be charged an “upkeep” fee?
We ask because … we hear things. And according to a tip to the Rat Line, the Fraud Governor may have recently held breakfast receptions in his State House office to thank campaign donors.
Now, we doubt the Fraud Governor would be so … foolish … as to hold a fund-raiser in his office. But would he hold a campaign thank-you there?
If so, would it be sanctioned by the Ethics Commission? And if so, would his campaign have to pay an “upkeep” fee?
According to the Office of Campaign and Political Finance, Team Reform paid for catering services on November 14, November 18, and November 19. Could these dates correspond to gubernatorial breakfast receptions? There are no corresponding “upkeep” payments. So perhaps our information is but a bad rumor.
Perhaps.
Then again, perhaps someone should FOIA Team Reform’s November/December calendar pages and guest logs. And ask for an Ethics Commission ruling.
Perhaps.
