Mongiardo supporter says contribution will buy ‘access’
Daniel Mongiardo (left) and Jack Conway
UPDATED AT 6:12 P.M.
FRANKFORT — The host of an upcoming fund-raiser for Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Daniel Mongiardo has told potential contributors that their donation will buy access to the lieutenant governor and Gov. Steve Beshear.
In an e-mail to potential donors, businessman Ray Hardebeck of Covington said individuals should give $1,000 if they want “access or have special needs that need to be discussed with the Governor and Lt. Governor” at the Sept. 23 fund-raiser at his home.
Mongiardo’s chief opponent in the 2010 Democratic primary, Attorney General Jack Conway, released the e-mail and said the solicitation is inappropriate.
“When official sponsors of fund-raising events expressly trade contributions for having special needs addressed by the Governor and Lt. Governor, it opens an entire range of questions about the nature of this fund-raiser,” said Conway spokesman Mark Riddle.
“Knowing Governor Beshear, we find it hard to believe he would condone or attend a fundraiser that promises or even implies access and to take care of special needs from donors in exchange for contributions,” Riddle said.
Hardebeck, with Permakil Pest Control Inc. in Covington, said Wednesday night that he sent the e-email on his own with no input from Beshear or Mongiardo and was “distressed” that Conway would “try to use it to smear the governor and lieutenant governor.”
“Look, I’m not a professional wordsmith or a politician,” Hardebeck said. “I was just overly enthusiastic that a governor was coming to my home. Who wouldn’t be?”
Beshear’s press secretary, Jay Blanton, said, “We were not aware of this e-mail and certainly did not see it before your questions about it.
“We are sure that nothing untoward or inappropriate was meant by it. The Governor provides the same level of open and transparent access to all people and Kentuckians regardless where he is – whether a town forum, a fund-raiser or a news conference. That won’t change.”
Mongiardo’s campaign consultant, Kim Geveden, said, the e-mail is “obviously not correct. Anyone who knows the governor and lieutenant governor knows they are accessible to all Kentuckians whenever their help is needed.”
Geveden said Conway “is angry and upset that Gov. Beshear is actively supporting Daniel Mongiardo for the United States Senate.”
He noted that Conway has personally sent hundreds of official invitations with his personal, handwritten signature on them asking for a $1,000 contribution in exchange for a “private conversation” with him.
Geveden said Hardebeck’s e-mail was “from an overly enthusiastic campaign supporter to his friends without the knowledge or authorization of anyone connected to the Mongiardo campaign.”
Riddle noted in a statement that a spokesman for Mongiardo’s campaign was quoted in May by the Cincinnati Enquirer saying “you don’t have to pay $1, much less $1,000, to have a private conversation with Lt. Gov. Dan Mongiardo.”
Riddle said the incident is a sign of hypocrisy by Mongiardo. “This is an example of how Mongiardo says one thing but does another behind closed doors,” he said. “… Kentucky voters expect candidates to say what they mean and mean what they say.”
–Jack Brammer
Filed Under: Daniel Mongiardo • Democratic Party • Elections • Jack Conway • US Senate Race
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rumor has it that this kind of thing is one of the reasons (if not primary) that Vince Gabbert is gone from gov office. Rumor says he was telling county officials that in order to get some of the gravy (eh, grants) that they needed to hire the Flint Group and Gene McLean (lobbyists)…would be interesting to see how many cities/counties that hired this group have received money from Dept of Local Gov…and this group will NOT shop on legislative ethics stuff because they are not lobbying legislators. Here that Trigg County, Lyon County, and City of Frankfort all hired Flint Group…who else did and have they received any money.
Didn’t Conway do the exact same thing in Northern KY?? Who’s a hypocrite again?
These 2 guys are handing this election to Grayson on a silver platter. That offer or statement is to extort money.. A poor choice of fundraisers. But poor choices in a campaign indicate a pattern of poor judgement in elected office. That is why we have the election / campaign process.
Contributions have always provided access as long as they are large enough. Why do you think the corporations run this country? Money is power.
Every politician will admit that contributions do give the contributors access to elected officials. They will also say that this access does not guarantee, or even imply, that the politician will do anything for the contributor. The mistake made by Hardebeck is saying this out loud, which he did no doubt because he is an exterminator, not a political operative. It may also be because he is from Northern Kentucky, where people are more blunt than they are in the part of Kentucky where people talk like Kentuckians. No wink wink nod nod here.
This is what happens when you allow amateurs to send out campaign-related emails. No professional operative would ever have approved this. All this means is that Mongiardo and Co. need to do a little better job of controlling their message.
just another sign that Dan Mongiardo is the only honest guy in this race! All the other guys would lie about this, but Daniel Mongiardo says what he thinks and he doesn’t run from who he is: You want access to Dan, you gotta pay for it, and you’ll get favors in return.
No other politician in this race is honest enough to deserve your vote.
Lets try this again. Brammer is a 100% complete Conway stooge!
I hate this paper and I thought Brammer was one of the good guys. I guess he will use his position to advance a candidate just like everyone else.
So SUCK IT BRAMMER YOURE A PUNK! LIKE THAT!
pay to play huh? its not even a dirty secret anymore that the money you contribute to a political campaign results in future access or that matter future favors…. its just plain political corruption, everybody knows it. wink wink
So on the Republican side, we have Rand Paul saying money won’t buy you privilege or pork and on the Democrats side, Mongiardo group is stating if you want representation, cough up the money. Man, you have got to love this state,
how’s that hope an change working out for you liberals? not that this is any different from the GOP. When are we going to get real leaders?
Wait, really? Dan’s The Man thinks it’s AWESOME for his candidate because his candidate is SO BRAZEN A THEIF THAT HE WON’T EVEN TRY TO COVER IT UP?!
You call Brammer a stooge because he reports something that is POTENTIALLY A FELONY?!
Please. You did a bad thing. You got caught. Own it, cancel the raiser, and move on.
every one of you politician types is a crook. Throw them all out. Dan Mongiardo is owned by coal and liberal labor interests. He must go.
Know what they say about things like this– where there’s smoke, there’s fire
http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/eousa/foia_reading_room/usam/title9/131mcrm.htm little thing called the hobbs act and i guess kim and dan didnt read that? Criminals who are bought and paid for by coal
How come nobody is talking about how Conway got caught doing the EXACT SAME THING ON HIS LETTERHEAD!!!! Here its a Mongiardo supporter sending out a private email, two totally different situations.
Tom, so our parents have been mistaken all this time, and you’re saying two wrongs DO make a right?
No, they don’t. A pox on both their houses. The first candidate to step back from this cesspool even slightly is the one I’ll hold my nose and support and vote for.