Highlights, [bracketed HOT comments] and reader comments added

[HOT: Read this and other articles on this site to connect the dots. Hidden in this story is how Houston homebuilder Bob Perry reacted to a 2006 report from Texas Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn that condemned his builder-protection agency, the TRCC. Bob Perry managed to launder a $1 million campaign contribution to Rick Perry's race for Governor - all under the nose of the Texas Ethics Commission. The TRCC is threatened again in this 2009 legislative session - by a mandatory sunset review, another damning report from the Sunset Advisory Commission staff, overwhelming homeowner testimony against the agency, and the relentless efforts to protect consumers by Homeowners of Texas.

What might Bob Perry do this time? Will he be able to find ways to use his money to influence decisions in his favor yet again, even though Texas laws ban campaign contributions while the legislature is in session. Will big promises and stern threats be enough?

According to  this NPR broadcast, Bob Perry has contributed more than $21M since 2006 to political candidates and judges, including all 9 the Texas Supreme Court justices. We find it interesting that this intensely media-shy guy would be lobbying at the Capitol one day before the TRCC hearings last week. Clearly Bob Perry is worried.]

In the final weeks of the 2006 campaign for governor, Republican incumbent Rick Perry's campaign attacked Democratic challenger Chris Bell for accepting a seven-figure contribution from a Houston trial lawyer.

But about that time, Perry operatives were trying to persuade the national Republican Governors Association to put as much as $2 million into his campaign, knowing that the group was about to get its own seven-figure contribution from a Texas donor. That donor would turn out to be Houston homebuilder Bob Perry.

Rick Perry eventually got $1 million from the governors on his way to a rather easy re-election win. A year later, Bell sued Perry and the association, alleging that the governor kept the public from fully knowing the source of the money.

The Perry campaign and the governors group will ask state District Judge John Dietz on Thursday to throw out the case. Perry lawyers say that Bell has not proved that the Perry campaign intentionally hid contributions made by Bob Perry (no relation) and that Bell is now quibbling over a couple of reporting errors that didn't even draw fines from the Texas Ethics Commission.

But in the meantime, depositions taken and evidence gathered in the 17-month-old case have shed new light on Perry's strategy in the 2006 race and shown how winning campaigns, even when they're ahead, don't take anything for granted.

Perry might have to run even harder in 2010, when he's expected to face his most serious challenge yet, from a fellow Republican who's won her share of statewide elections: U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison.

The 2006 race featured four major candidates: Perry, Bell and two independents, then-Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn and humorist Kinky Friedman.

Perry was considered the favorite throughout the race, but the rest of the field was tougher to predict. Strayhorn, currently a candidate for Austin mayor, was a longtime Republican but pulled key Democratic constituencies - trial lawyers and teachers - away from Bell, who suffered from a lack of name identification and funding. And the cigar-chomping Friedman appealed to some anti-establishment liberals and Libertarians.

Perry consultant Dave Carney said in a January deposition that the campaign asked the Republican Governors Association for a contribution early in the election cycle.

"I think their thought was, you know ... we were so far ahead that we didn't necessarily need the money," Carney said.

On Sept. 28, 2006, the Perry campaign had $9.2 million in the bank. But the campaign would soon push for help from the governors association.

On Oct. 4, 2006, Carney and Perry chief of staff Deirdre Delisi met with Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, the chairman of the governors group, and Romney said that he was about to get $1 million from a contributor in Texas whom he would not identify, the Perry campaign told Bell's lawyers in response to a question.

Bob Perry cut the governors association a $1 million check Oct. 6.

After the Romney meeting, according to the Perry campaign's legal team, Delisi learned from Bob Perry's lawyer that the homebuilder had made a contribution, and Delisi asked the lawyer, Buddy Jones, "to encourage the RGA to make some contributions in Texas since the RGA had raised such significant funds from Texas."

'Making Bell a factor'

About the same time, the Perry campaign was feeling new pressure to raise money because its strategy wasn't quite working out, Carney said in his deposition.

Perry operatives wanted to keep Bell strong so that Democrats would stick with him instead of flocking to Strayhorn. They also needed Friedman to keep voters away from Strayhorn, who was in the strongest position among challengers to raise money. At the end of September, Strayhorn had $5 million, and Friedman and Bell each had less than $1 million. (Ultimately, Perry reported spending $23 million on his re-election effort. Strayhorn spent $12.6 million, Bell $6.5 million and Friedman $3.8 million.)

Perry focused his attacks on Bell.

"Chris Bell, you know, just was never a factor," Carney said in the deposition. "We had to make him a factor because we needed to keep people from going to Strayhorn."

[HOT: Rick Perry's focus may have been on Bell, but it's clear that homebuilder Bob Perry's focus was on fighting Strayhorn. If elected, Strayhorn would have abolished the TRCC, saying the agency is a "paper tiger" that shields builders from responsibility. "If it were up to me personally, I would blast this TRCC builder-protection agency off the bureaucratic books."]

Two Friedman problems worried the Perry camp even further, Carney said. In the fall of 2006, the Burnt Orange Report, a liberal blog, posted audio of a racially insensitive comedy performance from Friedman in 1980. His opponents pounced. And in the one gubernatorial debate in early October, Friedman's jokes bombed, Carney said.

"He was just dead in the water," Carney said. "So it was in that October period we were really concerned that - that he would disappear in terms of support, even quit the race, and that sort of, you know, weird Austin vote would go to Carole."

Phil Musser, executive director of the Republican Governors Association during the 2006 election cycle, said in a deposition last October that the Perry campaign requested $2 million in early to mid-October 2006. Musser committed to giving the campaign $1 million in the form of two checks, he said, citing cash flow issues.

At the same time, the Perry campaign was publicly attacking Bell for taking $1 million from trial lawyer John O'Quinn, who had also pledged to raise another $4 million for the Democrat.

"A scandal-plagued personal injury trial lawyer is funneling millions of dollars to Democrat Chris Bell," said a Perry campaign commercial launched Oct. 13.

On Oct. 26, the governors group sent Texans for Rick Perry a $500,000 check. On Oct. 30 and 31, Bob Perry gave the governors group a check for $50,000 and another for $500,000. And on Nov. 1, Musser, the group's executive director, personally handed a $500,000 check to Rick Perry at the association's Washington office.

"Instead of Bob Perry just sending them a million bucks and them reporting it, they just funneled it through RGA," said Buck Wood, Bell's lawyer.

Small reporting error?

Wood said he doesn't have to prove that there was an intention to cover up the contribution, even though he thinks there was. Instead, the case focuses on the fact that the Perry campaign misidentified the governors group on its campaign finance reports leading up to the election. Because of the way the campaign identified the group, it did not have to disclose the group's donors over the previous year, as it would normally be required to do.

"It effectively kept anybody from knowing what was going on about these contributions," Wood said.

Pointing to a section of state law that allows candidates to recover money when their opponents make errors, Bell is seeking damages.

But lawyers for the Perry campaign say that, at worst, the campaign made a reporting error, and they're quick to point out that Bell dropped a section of his lawsuit alleging a conspiracy. The Texas Ethics Commission declined to fine the Perry campaign for a late report when it corrected its campaign finance records, saying, "The original reports were in substantial compliance."

"Their case has gotten down now to the point that they're trying to make it on one small, inadvertent reporting error," said Stephen McConnico, a lawyer for the Perry campaign.

Last month, Perry lawyers asked Bell campaign manager Jason Stanford during a deposition whether there were numerous instances in which the Bell campaign improperly reported contributions to the Ethics Commission.

"Numerous and very colorful," Stanford responded.

Wood said the errors they cited are, for the most part, not similar to the ones made by Perry's team.

Bell also is suing the governors association, saying that the group did not establish itself in Texas early enough to make a contribution and that it bears some responsibility for its contributor list not being on file with the state.

The group will also seek Thursday to have the case thrown out, and it has argued in court filings that it followed state law.

By Jason Embry, AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF (jembry@statesman.com; 512-445-3572), 04/06/2009
Source: http://www.statesman.com/news/content/region/legislature/stories/04/06/0406perryrga.html

Reader Comments (most recent shown first)

karoline wrote:
I want all Democrats who voted for $3.6 trillion dollars spending to work for $1.00 a year and size all their contribution from George Soros (Soros is single and one of the biggest silent thief and corruption in our Government), lobbyist must be listed and amount of donation, as well sizing all “bonuses” and their assets of their previous and present CEOs which are “friends in crime” from Fanny and Freddy, AIG CEOs and other business they bailed out with our hard earned dollars! We the American, legal citizens have legal responsibility and right to demand a term appointment for those politicians in Washington. Many of them, like Pelosi, Frank, Kennedy, Dodd, and Reid, including Obama and many others never held a private job. They were wealthy before they got elected and don’t know what it mean for an average person to work for someone else for a small pay. That is another reason that they feel so free to spend YOUR HARD EARN DOLLAR and tax you more or even take the job away from you, threatening you with all kind of garnishments including jail! How come that Geithner or all the other “democratic appointee” did not have their homes confiscated by the IRS for not paying taxes for so many years? Simple answer to that…he lied! We should demand that every media outlet publish complete Tax return (Federal and State) for each of the elected officials, what their deduction was and how much each one of them paid. All of them are PUBLIC SERVANTS and we have right to know!!!

lefty wrote:
Pitiful Perry, Has-been Strayhorn, Yawn-inducing Bell and One-liner Kinky! Kay Bailey is looking better by the hour.

Oren wrote:
Ah, yes Bush, guilty in what court? Delay, still wondering where the court is that is to try him? Awfully silent. Rove, never given a single court indicment but your poster boy for whupping up on. TXLAKESIDE, grow up. Run yourself out, you smell. Porkers of the year, Pelosi and Reed. Wonder what party they're from? Far from, hopefully.

Txlakeside wrote:
Lets run the republiCONS out in 2010! We have had enough with Bush, Delay, and Rove! Run the lot of CONS out!

nancy kessling wrote:
There are so many strong, intelligent and forward-thinking people in the Democratic Party here in Texas. Why can't we find a candidate who can actually win a statewide election?

Ydnar wrote:
It has been my observation that anything that Rick Perry does is suspect and should be investigated. Rick never met a dollar bill he didn't like.

vetco wrote:
I think someone should investigate both, bob and rick perry for corruption. i bet bob perry was one of rick perry's friends that bought thousands of acres around the old prison in sugarland that the land office and the governor said was unproductive. now this land i am told has several sub divisions on it. it was used to grow crops to feed the inmate population in our prisons in order to cut cost to the taxpayers and now the state is buying what it use to grow. i know in east texas that a couple of rick perry's friends have purchased thousands of acres that the prisons also used for growing crops. i bet at below market value too. part of these so called unproductive acres is being used as private hunting camps. these camps are making a lot of money for unproductive land. it appears that corruption is a republican way of life. corruption is just as bad as abortion and homosexuality and the punishment is the same. according to my christian bible, a sin is a sin no matter what it is. hello you so called christian conservatives. just look at the corruption or should i say corporate welfare with the toll road projects of rick perry. wish the texas governor would support me receving tax money to start a business, build it for me and let me keep the profits for 50 years.

tinnito wrote:
rick perry is nothing but someone puppet as for the toll roads thatsanother texas joke

Flying High wrote:
Does anyone really believe govenor Perry didn't know where the money came from? Another reason we need to get Perry out of office. Also, another good reason we need term limits on all politicians.

Oren wrote:
Why does it take so long, either it's valid and happened or it didn't and it needs to be thrown out? This just makes lawyers money and gives courts a bad name. He won! One error and Mr. Bell wants to be made a millionaire. Sour apples. The rules are so complex no one could file something without making an error.

AUS wrote:
I voted for Perry in '06 and support the toll roads, and will especially stand behind TTC-35. We need THEM, but we don't need HIM any more. Kay Bailey Hutchison will wipe the floor with Rick Perry!

worldcreator wrote:
2006 was NOT a "rather easy re-election win". Slick Perry got 39% of the vote!! Clearly the majority of Texans did NOT want this joker to remain in office. The main reason why he's still around is because there were 4 friggin candidates!!! Perry actually won by default AND the fact that most of his voters were simply UNeducated about his back room special interest toll road deals, especially with regards to the Trans-Texas Corridor. If Perry wins another 4 years we might as well start considering Texas a dictatorship with this clown in office for 14 years!!!

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