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More than 25 percent of funds raised by Rep. Tom Latham’s political action committee during the 2008 election cycle paid for trips to resorts around the country, according to documents filed with the Federal Election Commission.
U.S. Rep. Tom Latham, R-Ames
Latham’s PAC, called For America’s Republican Majority (FARM PAC), raised $205,447 during the two-year campaign cycle that led up to the 2008 elections, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Of that total, nearly $52,000 was spent for trips advertised as fundraisers, mostly to well-known golf courses in California. The money paid for travel, hotel accommodations, meals and golf course fees.
That total represents only expenses associated with out-of-state travel and does not include fees paid to fundraising consultants or fundraisers held in the Washington, D.C., area. It also does not include other charges related to the trips, such as a $1,775 payment in August 2008 to Los Angeles-based Summit Limousine for transportation to a fundraising event.
When those expenses are factored in, the PAC spent $80,165 on entertainment and other fundraising costs, or nearly 40 percent of all money raised.
The PAC spent a little more than $70,000 on direct contributions to Republican candidates around the country, a practice that is supposed to be the main focus of these types of organizations, called “leadership PACs.”
Election reform advocates are highly critical of leadership PACs, saying they amount to little more than political slush funds designed to allow elected officials to skirt campaign finance laws. Two trips this year by Latham — a weekend in Atlantic City, N.J., and a golf outing at the prestigious Greenbrier Resort in West Virginia — have already drawn criticism.
Below is a list of expenses associated with out of state travel during the 2008 election cycle.
Trips taken in 2007 (dates reflect when payment was issued):
Boca Raton Resort in Boca Raton, Fla., in February
La Quinta Resort & Club in La Quinta, Calif., in February
The St. Regis Monarch Beach in Dana Point, Calif., in February
Boca Raton Resort in Boca Raton, Fla., in March
Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in Del Mar, Calif., in May
Averills Lodge at Whitefish in Montana in August
The St. Regis Monarch Beach in Dana Point, Calif., in August
Embassy Suites Omaha in August
Caves Valley Golf Club in Owings Mills, Md., in December
Trips made during 2008:
LaQuinta Resort & Club in La Quinta, Calif., in January
The Cliffs Hotel in Shell Beach, Calif., in June
Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, Calif., in August
Greenbrier Hotel in White Sulphur Springs. W.V. in September
Hilton Hotel in Minneapolis, Minn., in September
The St. Regis Monarch Beach in Dana Point, Calif in September
Disney Resort Grand Lake in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., in November
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