Valley News Network: Homework for 2012

On the Air from Los Angeles, City of dreamers and Muses.

Off the record, on the QT, and very hush-hush. 

In some of the backroom stories I'm hearing, this is becoming a major factor in drawing candidates.  Even though many good candidates are scared of the New Lines, (I will be meeting some good ones this weekend) this is also a factor:

(h/t LA Times)

Durkee, head of Durkee & Associates, was arrested by the FBI on Sept. 2. A federal affidavit said she admitted misappropriating clients' funds for years and filing false federal campaign forms.

Durkee, who has not entered a plea on federal mail fraud charges, was released Friday on $200,000 bond.

Feinstein said Monday that Durkee had struck her campaign in addition to Sanchez's. According to her staff, Feinstein said she "was wiped out, too, but we don't know how much."

Durkee managed Feinstein's campaign finances in 1992, 1994, 2000 and 2006, and during her failed 1990 gubernatorial campaign.

Feinstein and other lawmakers have said Durkee's alleged actions came as a surprise, but investigators had been reviewing her work for years. When the FBI launched its investigation in January, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office and the state Fair Political Practices Commission were already investigating Durkee. During the last decade, she had amassed $185,860 in fines from the Fair Political Practices Commission in eight separate cases.


But a Feinstein campaign spokesman said Monday that Durkee's work never drew suspicion. Durkee was the protege of another longtime Democratic campaign treasurer, Jules Glazer. Glazer — accountant to Gov. Gray Davis and to Gov. Jerry Brown's early campaigns, among other prominent politicians — had managed Feinstein's campaign accounts with Durkee. When he retired, Durkee took over, said Bill Carrick, Feinstein's chief campaign consultant.

Now look at which campaigns were affected:

(ht Washington Post)

Prosecutors say that Durkee, who was arrested Sept. 2, took $677,000 out of the account of a state assemblyman and transferred money into accounts held by Reps. Loretta Sanchez and Susan A. Davis.
...
Durkee serves as treasurer for 87 federal campaign committees, including that of Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), records show. The committees together held $6.6 million.


Durkee also worked for more than 100 state-level campaigns in California and many nonprofit groups. The organizations include the Latino Diabetes Association and the Poker Voters of America.


In all, Durkee had control of more than 400 bank accounts, according to the complaint filed Sept. 2 in federal court in Sacramento.


Unraveling the transfers between accounts will be complicated. The complaint alleges that Durkee was able to keep the subterfuge secret for years by shifting money among account


Now then, after you hit my Tip jar (to help me through this weekend in Downtown LA).....

Are you ready to support the Rise of the Right on the Left Coast? Start where there are Palm trees and beautiful woman, Los Angeles.  I even know some candidates.