Congressional candidate Jared Polis insists his trip to Baghdad during Thanksgiving week isn’t a campaign stunt.
But his denials became harder for his opponents to accept after a “Polis for Congress” flier highlighting the trip hit mailboxes the day he left.
Polis, who is seeking the 2nd Congressional District seat now held by Mark Udall, also invited the public and media to a live blog chat and conference call from Jordan this week, and he wants voters to check out his photos from the Middle East at town hall meetings upon his return.
Adding to the debate over his motives, questions arose Tuesday about the trip’s financing.
Polis, a multimillionaire and former chairman of the state school board, is paying for his trip, as well as that of the Mile High United Way representative Polis said he was accompanying.
Until Tuesday, Polis’ campaign had declined to release funding details — saying only that he was joining a United Way mission to visit nonprofit relief agencies and that his attorney would sort out what costs he would publicly report as campaign expenses.
But Mile High United Way said Polis was funding the trip for its executive vice president, Rich Audsley, not simply accompanying him. The organization did not have details about how much it will cost, said spokeswoman Dana Smith.
Polis’ Democratic primary opponents — Boulder conservationist Will Shafroth and former state Senate president Joan Fitz-Gerald — slammed him for what they called an attempt to disguise a campaign trip.
“Under the guise of a goodwill trip for a nonprofit organization, Jared Polis is advancing his own political agenda and entangling political funds and nonprofit funds, which raises serious questions about his judgment,” said Lynea Hansen, Shafroth’s campaign manager.
Fitz-Gerald campaign manager Mary Alice Mandarich said Polis “could be using the nonprofit charitable organization for political gain.”
“The war is too important to play Thanksgiving politics, like the Bush administration is infamous for doing,” she said.
But Polis campaign manager Wanda James said the trip is “absolutely, positively not a political stunt whatsoever.”
The war in Iraq has become the top issue in the campaign to replace Udall, and it’s “imperative that Jared sees it for himself” to “open up a small window of understanding” for citizens in the 2nd Congressional District, James said.
“Jared was able to go on the trip like anyone else who is working with a humanitarian organization,” she said.
The Polis campaign also fired back at Fitz-Gerald.
“This is showing the kind of leader Joan is — knocking down any good idea or action that brings about positive change which she is not in control of,” James said.
Polis has to be careful to stay within the rules of the Federal Election Commission, which regulates campaign-finance laws.
If his expenses are “campaign-related,” said FEC spokesman George Smaragdis, then Polis must report them as an in-kind contribution or a usual expenditure, regardless of his denials to the contrary.
But Polis can’t use campaign funds for the trip if he is doing something that would exist “irrespective” of his campaign, according to federal election rules.
FEC advisory opinions consider factors such as statements regarding the purpose of an event, remarks made at the event and its timing when determining whether something is campaign-related.
It’s unusual for non-incumbent congressional candidates to visit Iraq, said Maj. Brad Leighton, spokesman for the Multi-National Force-Iraq in Baghdad.
While there are “many congressional visits,” a representative of the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad cited “security concerns” in declining to provide an estimate of the number of politicians who will arrive there this week, camera equipment in tow.
Polis and his opponents have sparred on the war before. In September, Polis dug up Fitz-Gerald’s 4-year-old state Senate votes in support of ousting Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and another backing President Bush. Fitz-Gerald countered that Americans were “lied to about Saddam Hussein’s capabilities.”
All three candidates have called for the removal of troops from Iraq.
Democrats far outnumber Republicans in the 2nd Congressional District, meaning the winner of the August primary will probably take Udall’s seat. Udall is running for U.S. Senate.
