NEW: McGovern Fires Back at CREW Report
Friday, March 23, 2012
US Congressman Jim McGovern
The McGovern camp fired back at the report entitled “Family Affair,” with spokesman Michael Mershon issuing a blistering statement in which he accused the watchdog group of not practicing what it preaches.
“I have a hard time being lectured about ethics from an outfit like CREW that refuses to release the names of their own donors,” Mershon said in an e-mailed statement to GoLocalWorcester. “…Bill Talcott is a Massachusetts-licensed CPA with a master’s degree in accounting from Northeastern University.”
Talcott is McGovern’s brother-in-law and treasurer for his re-election committee. According to the CREW report, the congressman’s leadership PAC paid Talcott $1,800 for administrative services during the 2010 election. McGovern’s campaign committee, according to the report, paid Talcott $22,377 for accounting services at the same time. During the 2008 election campaign, the committee paid him $14.257, CREW charged.
Mershon said Talcott is eminently qualified.
“He is paid an hourly rate by the McGovern campaign for his meticulous bookkeeping, banking and FEC compliance work, and he does an outstanding job,” he said. “He documents his work to the quarter-hour. He has served as our campaign treasurer for almost 20 years and will continue to do so for as long as he is willing. Again, this is Jim’s campaign account – not a single dime of taxpayer funds is involved.”
The other Massachusetts congressmen singled out in the CREW report are:
• Congressman Stephen Lynch, Democrat-9th Congressional District: CREW reveals Lynch paid his sister, Donna Bohan, $3,331 during the 2010 election. He also donated money to his wife’s employer, the South Boston Community Health Center, and directed three earmarks totaling $324,000 to the center.
• Congressman Ed Markey, Democrat-7th Congressional District: On two occasions, according to CREW, the Markey campaign donated to a fund in memory of his late parents, John and Christina Markey.
• Congressman Richard Neal, Democrat-2nd Congressional District: Neal’s campaign, the CREW report states, hired his son, Brendan Conway Neal, and paid him a total of $28,566 during two separate election campaigns.
• Congressman John Tierney, Democrat-6th Congressional District: CREW says the Tierney campaign paid his uncle’s law firm, Gelineau and Kline, $796 for shipping and a computer during the 2010 campaign.
• Niki Tsongas, Democrat-5th Congressional District: According to CREW, her daughter, Ashley Tsongas, lobbied for Oxfam in 2007 and part of 2008.
An incredulous Mershon scolded CREW for its criticism of Markey.
“They included in their ‘expose’ the fact that Congressman Markey’s campaign made small donations to a scholarship fund named for his late parents,” he said. “Are you kidding me?”
GoLocalWorcester sought comment from CREW, but was unsuccessful.
In its report, the organization conceded that, “many of the financial arrangements uncovered during this project are legal. In some cases; however, the practices revealed may violate existing federal laws and/or rules of the House of Representatives.”
“The Department of Justice, the FEC and the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct,” the report continued, “should consider whether the actions of any of the members of Congress named in this report violated any … laws or rules.”
The report targeted both parties, noting 40 Democrats and 42 Republicans paid family members through their congressional offices, campaign committees and political action committees (PACs).
Related Articles
- Breaking: Congressman Jim McGovern Arrested
- PowerPlayer: Congressman Jim McGovern
- Breaking: Congressman Jim McGovern Released from Custody
Follow us on Pinterest Google + Facebook Twitter See It Read It