Senators should ask Solis why she approved campaign spots paid for by her non-profit
By: EXAMINER EDITORIAL HOT ZONE ALERT:
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February 5, 2009
Rep. Hilda Solis, D-CA, should be asked in her Senate confirmation process as President Barack Obama's nominee for Secretary of Labor to explain why she approved funds to pay for congressional lobbying by a union-supported non-profit group on two bills she co-sponsored. She should also explain why she failed to note this on her financial disclosure report. She should further explain her role in approving spending by the non-profit group on "electioneering" television ads targeting incumbent Republican senators during the 2008 campaign.
Besides being a congressman, Solis is treasurer and a member of the board of directors of American Rights at Work (ARW), the 501c4, non-profit group that has received at least $1 million in contributions from labor unions. ARW spent more than $230,000 in 2007 and 2008 lobbying Congress on two bills Solis actively co-sponsored – the Employee Free Choice Act and the Public Safety Employer/Employee Cooperation Act. Both bills are top priorities for labor bosses who spent in excess of $300 million electing Democrats to Congress in 2008. Solis failed to note her role as ARW treasurer on her congressional disclosure reports, as she is required to do under House rules. As treasurer, she was required by IRS rules to account for all spending by the group, so her role was hardly ceremonial or passive, as claimed by her supporters.
But ARW also spent thousands of dollars on television spots described by the group in its report to the FEC as "electioneering communications." Since as treasurer, Solis is required to approve all ARW spending, she must have signed off on the spots. This may well put her and ARW in violation of the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act of 2002. Among the Republicans targeted by ARW were incumbents Norm Coleman, Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, Gordon Smith, and John Sununu. The anti-Sununu ad, for example, cost ARW $169,225 to air in New Hampshire, while another $69,105 paid for airing an anti-Coleman spot in Minnesota. So ARW clearly spent funds, with Solis' knowledge and approval "in connection with an election for federal office." Again, as treasurer, Solis could hardly have been in a ceremonial or passive participant.
