This is a classic. If you are a political operative you are under no obligation to make yourself known on political web site discussion groups. In fact, it is kind of stupid.
Now that I’ve let 5 or 6 of you carry on your hate campaign against me. Here are the facts:
2/27/04- Kane County Conservative Coalition received $5000 from Family-PAC
3/1/04- Republicans for Simmons reported receiving $2500 from Jon Zahm personally. This was a number equivalent to money paid to me by the KCCC. It need not be reported until the semi-annual report.
3/1/04- Wiegand for State Representative Committee reports an in-kind contribution from Family-PAC/Goliath Slayer Communications for $2500 (salary for field services)
Now you know where the $5000 went. What is illegal? What is unethical? Where’s the scandal?
Keep grasping at straws. You’re making fools of yourselves.
Jon Zahm
Goliath Slayer
www.goliathslayers.com
Whether it is legal (and it probably is in Illinois minus specific evidence of a quid pro quo) it is a bad idea to even entertain such discussions about where is being funneled. The most important issue left out of the thread appears to be that John Zahm is the President of the Kane County Conservative Coalition. The practice is certainly unethical, though widespread through Democratic and Republican circles.
But giving Patrick Fitzgerald an easy tip off of something fishy on the internet is probably a bad idea. It isn’t as if picking off another Republican operative would be hard given the scope of the Ryan investigation.
UPDATE: For those not familiar with Zahm, I forgot to mention he is the guy who runs Family PAC too so it is even more humorous with that information.
And I thought Republicans hated taxes. It appears that all of the $5000 that Zahm laundered for Republican candidates was first paid out to him as personal income. That means that state and federal income taxes took roughly a third, perhaps nearly half depending on his gross income and payroll taxes.
Do you suppose Mr. Zahm makes this a point in his solicitations? “HALF or YOUR contribution will go to the Federal and State government to help pay the burgeoning gov’t deficit” . Nice to know they’re just putting us on with all that antitax rhetoric.
The Arch Pundit is wrong. Nothing unethical about choosing to donate monies earned by me to a candidate I believe in.
I do not run Family-PAC. That is a falsehood. I have contributed to that organization and have done some contract work for them, however.
The Pundit ought to place his name on a ballot sometime and do something to improve his community rather than rail from the sidelines.