Level 3 chief executive James Crowe gave $1,000 to GOP gubernatorial candidate Bob Beauprez in July. About a week later, Crowe gave the same amount to Bill Ritter, Beauprez’s Democratic rival.
It’s a similar story for Richard Notebaert, chief executive of Qwest. Notebaert gave $500 to Beauprez’s gubernatorial campaign in May 2005. A year later, the Qwest chief executive gave Ritter $1,000.
Crowe and Notebaert – along with their telecom companies’ political action committees – have aligned themselves with candidates on both sides of the aisle heading into the Nov. 7 election.
“They’re hedging their bets,” said John Straayer, a political science professor at Colorado State University. “If you are not sure who is going to win, you write checks to both sides.”
Because many businesses are affected by legislation and regulated by government agencies, corporate executives seek to develop goodwill with candidates – regardless of party.
“There is some money given for ideological reasons, but the vast majority is about access,” said Meredith McGehee, policy director at The Campaign Legal Center in Washington D.C.
Nationwide, corporations will contribute about three- quarters of the estimated $2.6 billion that will be spent on congressional races this election, according to a recent report by the Center for Responsive Politics, a Washington, D.C.-based nonpartisan group that tracks political contributions.
While business interests have historically tended to give more to Republicans than to Democrats, this year Democrats have closed the gap given the sense that they could win key seats, said McGehee.
Where’s the money flowing this election cycle from Colorado business interests?
Since some big money flows to party committees, which then dish out the cash to candidates, it’s sometimes difficult to track the money. But here are some examples of notable donors, prior to October:
Denver business mogul Philip Anschutz gave $20,000 to the Colorado Republican Federal Campaign Committee and $10,000 to the Republican Federal Committee of Pennsylvania. He also donated $1,000 each to Marilyn Musgrave and Tom Tancredo of Colorado, both Republicans running for re-election to Congress.
Crowe of Level 3 has donated at least $72,563 this election cycle, including more than $28,000 to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. He’s given thousands of dollars to at least seven candidates for U.S. Senate, both Democrats and Republicans. Crowe’s wife, Pamela, has contributed at least $89,000, including at least $41,463 to national Democratic campaign committees.
Wayne Murdy, chief executive of Newmont Mining Corp., gave $208 every two weeks for much of the past two years – totaling at least $8,112 – to help fund Newmont’s political action committee. That PAC donated $19,000 to congressional Republicans and $4,500 to Democrats.
“The CEO has a lot of influence” on how a PAC doles out its money, said Robert Stern, president of the Center for Governmental Studies in Los Angeles, who has studied money in politics for 35 years. “It’s often the top company executives who are making the donations.”
Separately, Murdy gave $5,000 in March 2005 to the National Mining Association PAC.
PACs are created by private groups to help elect or defeat a candidate or to promote an agenda. Corporate employees may donate to their company’s PAC.
Contributions from PACs are capped at $5,000 per candidate per election and $15,000 per year to any national party committee.
So-called 527 groups are named after a section of the tax code and often receive funding from PACs but are not subject to contribution limits.
The Level 3 PAC contributed $49,500 to congressional Democrats and $47,000 to Republicans.
The most active corporate PAC in Colorado appears to belong to Qwest, the regional phone company and Fortune 500 company.
During the 2005-06 election cycle, the Qwest PAC has contributed at least $710,000, with Republican congressional candidates receiving more than $336,015 and Democrats $113,487, according to Political Money Line, a website that tracks money in politics.
Staff writer Will Shanley can be reached at 303-954-1260 or wshanley@denverpost.com.
