A D V E R T I S E M E N T
A D V E R T I S E M E N T
Karen Minnis
File photo / The Gresham Outlook
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Former Oregon House Speaker Karen Minnis is winding down her legislative career, but has become enmeshed in a new political controversy.
The Wood Village Republican, serving the final months of her fifth House term, hung up a shingle in December as a political consultant, and is getting paid to assist House Republicans with campaign fundraising.
She subsequently raised eyebrows in Salem by doling out $20,500 of her leftover campaign funds to four Republican campaign committees — around the time those four committees also hired her as a paid consultant.
Oregon politicians are permitted to donate leftover campaign funds to charities or other campaigns, but it is illegal to convert the funds into personal use.
House Majority Leader Dave Hunt, D-Gladstone, who aspires to be the next House speaker, criticized Minnis’ actions, but stopped short of accusing her of breaking the law.
Minnis’ transactions could be “laundering campaign money for personal gain,” Hunt said. “It’s probably legal, but it’s borderline ethical.”
Minnis, who served as House speaker in the 2003 and 2005 legislative sessions, vigorously protested Hunt’s comments. “That is an outrageous charge,” she said.
“There’s absolutely no correlation at all” between her political donations and consulting work, Minnis said. “There was no quid pro quo at all.”
Minnis said she is so outraged that she is threatening legal action against Hunt for comments he made to the Portland Tribune and Gresham Outlook. She has asked attorney Kelly Clark to represent her.
“I’m on my way out” of the Legislature, she said. “There’s no reason to defame me.”
Last December, Minnis donated $10,000 in surplus campaign funds to the House Republicans’ campaign arm, Promote Oregon Leadership Political Action Committee. During the next three months, she donated a combined $10,500 to three House Republican candidates: incumbent John Huffman of The Dalles and challengers Jim Weidner of Newberg and John Nelsen of Gresham. Promote Oregon Leadership PAC has since paid Minnis a total of $12,800 in monthly consulting fees, and she billed the three candidates a combined $3,000.
Minnis sent consulting bills to three of the clients and followed up two to 11 days later with donations from her campaign funds.
Campaign finance watchdogs said Minnis’ transactions raise questions and may merit further investigation, but others came to her defense.
“What’s causing people heartburn is the timing,” said Janice Thompson, director of Democracy Reform Oregon. “It isn’t surprising that a lame duck is giving money to political allies or going into business as a campaign consultant. It is troubling, however, to see the contributions primarily going to candidates using those consulting services.”
“These kind of deals are fairly common, to take care of your people,” said Norman Turrill, campaign finance reform chairman of the League of Women Voters of Oregon. “I guess the question in my mind is if she’s doing real work for the retainer that she seems to be getting. I don’t see any problem with it as long as she’s doing actual work for that money. That would be something to establish.”
State records show that Minnis registered her new business, Karen Minnis and Associates, on Dec. 11, 2007. The next day, she donated the $10,000 to the Promote Oregon Leadership PAC, the successor to the House Republican campaign arm that Minnis once controlled.
Eight days later, the political action committee gave Minnis her first $1,000 payment for consulting work.
State law allows politicians to spend campaign money on expenses connected with their office, for contributions to other political candidates and committees, for donations to nonprofits and other purposes. Funds cannot be used for household items, personal effects, housing and similar purposes.
State Elections Division Director John Lindback said he couldn’t discuss the specifics of Minnis’ case, but said he wouldn’t be surprised to see it wind up as the subject of an elections complaint.
Minnis noted that she gave leftover campaign money to several candidates. “The caucus would be a natural,” she said.
However, records show she wound up consulting for all of the campaigns to which she contributed money since forming her business, except for a $250 donation to a former colleague running for Yamhill County commissioner, and a payment to close out the books on The Speakers PAC , a political action committee she ran as House speaker.
Minnis also donated $15,000 in leftover campaign funds last December to her church, City Bible Church. Records show she spent other leftover campaign funds on miscellaneous travel expenses, meals, and lodging for trips to the Dorchester Conference, a Republican gathering in Seaside. Even after the contributions, Minnis still had about $4,700 in her campaign fund as of Aug. 6.
Bruce Hanna, the current House Republican leader, said his caucus first asked Minnis to do fundraising, and prepared a written contract to formalize the relationship. Her contacts with donors were very helpful to Republican candidates, Hanna said.
“She has helped me raise literally thousands of dollars, and helped me get acquainted with people to further those relationships so I can raise even more.”
Hanna brushed aside the timing issue or any perception of a connection between Minnis’ donations and consulting work.
“From a business perspective, there is nothing unethical, absolutely nothing illegal, and nothing unusual” about the arrangement, Hanna said.
Rep. Huffman, who was appointed to a vacant House seat last August, said he asked Minnis to donate to his campaign after using her as a consultant, when he noticed she had given money to her church and other causes.
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