March 25, 2009 12:32 AM UTC

Call for Scott "McLobbyist" McInnis to keep his commitment

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• by: Alan

(Isn’t this why he didn’t run for Senate? – promoted by Colorado Pols)

This past weekend ex-Congressman Scott McInnis, now a lawyer-lobbyist, announced at a Republican party meeting that he plans to run for Governor in 2010. (“McInnis tells pals: “I’m in” governor race,” Denver Post, 3/22/2009)

The last time McInnis was in the papers this much was in November, 2004 when he was still in Congress and under investigation by the Federal Election Commission. The FEC was investigating McInnis for using his campaign committee to pay his wife a salary of more than $40,000, plus an additional $1,150 per month, plus additional funds for a car and cell phone. (Denver Post, 11/12/2004).

The big problem with that arrangement was that McInnis didn’t actually have a campaign at that point. He already had announced in the summer of 2003 that he would not seek another term, but still kept his wife on the “campaign” payroll for over a year after his decision not to run. (Washington Post, 11/10/2004)

It gets worse.

On June 2, 2004, McInnis stated that much of the $1.3 million leftover in his campaign war chest–what he wasn’t giving to his wife–would be used to “seed a new foundation” on breast cancer research, education and conservation. (Rocky Mountain News, 6/2/2004)

But on September 29, 2004, just before McInnis left office, his first reported “charity” was a $5,000 contribution to the DeLay Legal Expense Trust, the legal defense fund for ex-Majority Leader Tom DeLay.  (Center for Responsive Politics) Two months after that donation, and following DeLay’s indictment, McInnis voted to weaken the ethics rules and allow his boss DeLay to remain majority leader. (RMN, 11/21/20004)

Paying for DeLay’s legal expenses out of his campaign war chest is a far cry from McInnis’ pledge to use the money for breast cancer research, education and conservation.

Click on the following link to join our call for McInnis to stick to his pledge to use the money left-over from his previous campaigns for “breast cancer research, education and conservation” instead of bankrolling his wife or Tom DeLay’s legal expenses:

http://www.ProgressNowColorado.org/KeepYourPledge

Thank you, in advance, for your help in holding McInnis accountable.