Post by bot on Apr 29, 2004 4:29:34 GMT -5
Gore Giving Leftover Cash of $6 Million to Back Kerry
-----------------------------------------------------
>From The New York Times
(link:http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/29/politics/campaign/29GORE.html)
By GLEN JUSTICE and KATHARINE Q. SEELYE
WASHINGTON, April 28 - Former Vice President Al Gore, who backed Howard
Dean in the Democratic primaries, announced Wednesday that he would give
more than $6 million left over from his unsuccessful (sic) 2000
presidential campaign to support Senator John Kerry and the Democratic
Party.
Mr. Gore flew from Nashville to Cleveland on Tuesday to meet privately
with Mr. Kerry and give him the news. A person close to the former vice
president said he wanted to tell Mr. Kerry in person, wish him well and
discuss several issues.
Mr. Gore said he wanted to help Mr. Kerry counteract the accusations being
leveled against him by the Bush campaign, which has been sharply
questioning the senator's national security credentials.
"John will be a great president for all Americans," Mr. Gore said, and I
want to do everything I can to help him fight against the outrageous and
misleading campaign being waged by the Bush-Cheney campaign."
"The outcome of this election is extremely important for the future of our
country and for all that America stands for," he said.
Mr. Gore said he would give $4 million to the Democratic National
Committee and $1 million each to party committees in the House and the
Senate, according to his office. He will also give $250,000 to the party
in his home state, Tennessee, which he lost in the 2000 election.
The money comes from a special account that presidential candidates use to
pay the accounting and legal costs of complying with campaign finance
laws. The account contained about $6.6 million as of March, according to
reports at the Federal Election Commission.
Mr. Gore also said he would give about $240,000 to the Florida Democratic
Party. That money is left over from an account he created in 2000 to pay
for his battle over the recount of votes there four years ago.
Mr. Gore is allowed to dispose of excess money in both accounts and can
legally transfer unlimited amounts to political parties, said Bob
Biersack, a Federal Election Commission spokesman. The former presidential
contender cannot give large amounts to candidates directly because of
limits on contributions. Under campaign finance rules, he could also have
given the money to a charity.
Representative Robert T. Matsui of California, chairman of the Democratic
Congressional Campaign Committee, said he got a standing ovation from
lawmakers on Wednesday when he announced the donation to the House
Democratic caucus.
"We were not expecting an infusion of this size from anybody," he said. "I
was kind of speechless when he told us."
Randy Button, the chairman of the Democratic Party in Tennessee, said
local Democrats had talked to Mr. Gore, who now lives in Nashville, about
"investing" in the state party but were unaware of how much he might
donate or when.
"This is where Al Gore is making good on his pledge to rebuild the party
in Tennessee," Mr. Button said, referring to Mr. Gore's concession speech
in 2000 when he said he wanted to "mend fences" in his home state.
Scott Maddox, chairman of the Florida party, said Mr. Gore called him
Tuesday night on his cellphone and told him at the end of a casual
conversation that he was giving him some money.
"We had talked with people in his office saying that we'd appreciate any
help we could get with fund-raising or appearances, but I didn't know
about this," Mr. Maddox said.
Mr. Gore surprised the political world late last year by endorsing Dr.
Dean, the former governor of Vermont. After Dr. Dean left the campaign
trail in March, Mr. Gore effectively endorsed Mr. Kerry at a gala dinner
in Washington.
He met with Mr. Kerry on Tuesday night in a hotel in Cleveland for more
than half an hour. The meeting was private and had not appeared on Mr.
Kerry's schedule.
Asked aboard his campaign plane whether Mr. Gore had told him about his $6
million plan on Tuesday in Cleveland, Mr. Kerry feigned ignorance not only
about the money but even about his own meeting. He then refused any
comment.
The Democratic parties still trail their Republican rivals in fund-raising
through March. The Republican National Committee and its counterparts in
the House and Senate had raised more than $289 million since January 2003
and had almost $86 million on hand, according to PoliticalMoneyLine, which
tracks campaign finance. The Democratic National Committee and its
counterparts had raised about $146 million and had about $46 million
banked.
-----------------------------------------------------
>From The New York Times
(link:http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/29/politics/campaign/29GORE.html)
By GLEN JUSTICE and KATHARINE Q. SEELYE
WASHINGTON, April 28 - Former Vice President Al Gore, who backed Howard
Dean in the Democratic primaries, announced Wednesday that he would give
more than $6 million left over from his unsuccessful (sic) 2000
presidential campaign to support Senator John Kerry and the Democratic
Party.
Mr. Gore flew from Nashville to Cleveland on Tuesday to meet privately
with Mr. Kerry and give him the news. A person close to the former vice
president said he wanted to tell Mr. Kerry in person, wish him well and
discuss several issues.
Mr. Gore said he wanted to help Mr. Kerry counteract the accusations being
leveled against him by the Bush campaign, which has been sharply
questioning the senator's national security credentials.
"John will be a great president for all Americans," Mr. Gore said, and I
want to do everything I can to help him fight against the outrageous and
misleading campaign being waged by the Bush-Cheney campaign."
"The outcome of this election is extremely important for the future of our
country and for all that America stands for," he said.
Mr. Gore said he would give $4 million to the Democratic National
Committee and $1 million each to party committees in the House and the
Senate, according to his office. He will also give $250,000 to the party
in his home state, Tennessee, which he lost in the 2000 election.
The money comes from a special account that presidential candidates use to
pay the accounting and legal costs of complying with campaign finance
laws. The account contained about $6.6 million as of March, according to
reports at the Federal Election Commission.
Mr. Gore also said he would give about $240,000 to the Florida Democratic
Party. That money is left over from an account he created in 2000 to pay
for his battle over the recount of votes there four years ago.
Mr. Gore is allowed to dispose of excess money in both accounts and can
legally transfer unlimited amounts to political parties, said Bob
Biersack, a Federal Election Commission spokesman. The former presidential
contender cannot give large amounts to candidates directly because of
limits on contributions. Under campaign finance rules, he could also have
given the money to a charity.
Representative Robert T. Matsui of California, chairman of the Democratic
Congressional Campaign Committee, said he got a standing ovation from
lawmakers on Wednesday when he announced the donation to the House
Democratic caucus.
"We were not expecting an infusion of this size from anybody," he said. "I
was kind of speechless when he told us."
Randy Button, the chairman of the Democratic Party in Tennessee, said
local Democrats had talked to Mr. Gore, who now lives in Nashville, about
"investing" in the state party but were unaware of how much he might
donate or when.
"This is where Al Gore is making good on his pledge to rebuild the party
in Tennessee," Mr. Button said, referring to Mr. Gore's concession speech
in 2000 when he said he wanted to "mend fences" in his home state.
Scott Maddox, chairman of the Florida party, said Mr. Gore called him
Tuesday night on his cellphone and told him at the end of a casual
conversation that he was giving him some money.
"We had talked with people in his office saying that we'd appreciate any
help we could get with fund-raising or appearances, but I didn't know
about this," Mr. Maddox said.
Mr. Gore surprised the political world late last year by endorsing Dr.
Dean, the former governor of Vermont. After Dr. Dean left the campaign
trail in March, Mr. Gore effectively endorsed Mr. Kerry at a gala dinner
in Washington.
He met with Mr. Kerry on Tuesday night in a hotel in Cleveland for more
than half an hour. The meeting was private and had not appeared on Mr.
Kerry's schedule.
Asked aboard his campaign plane whether Mr. Gore had told him about his $6
million plan on Tuesday in Cleveland, Mr. Kerry feigned ignorance not only
about the money but even about his own meeting. He then refused any
comment.
The Democratic parties still trail their Republican rivals in fund-raising
through March. The Republican National Committee and its counterparts in
the House and Senate had raised more than $289 million since January 2003
and had almost $86 million on hand, according to PoliticalMoneyLine, which
tracks campaign finance. The Democratic National Committee and its
counterparts had raised about $146 million and had about $46 million
banked.