Terry McAuliffe’s fundraising emails are things of wonder and awe. The wonder basically boils down to “is that all they’ve got?” and the awe comes from the fact that they actually seem to work.
Take the most recent example that landed in my inbox overnight. It hangs upon a few Democratic copywriting standards: the evil tea partiers (who are now also “anti-science) are bankrolling Ken Cuccinelli. Run for your lives! But before you bug out, could you leave a sawbuck in Terry’s tin cup?
This particular email focuses on Foster Friess, who gave an entire generation of Democratic copywriters a priceless gift when he said “You know, back in my days, they used Bayer aspirin for contraception. The gals put it between their knees, and it wasn’t that costly.”
Like I said, that’s a priceless gift. And McAuliffe’s copywriters will use it in every possible context from now until election day. Hillary Clinton’s will pick it up soon thereafter.
But if we’re going to delve into donors and the sometimes wacky things they say and do, let’s turn the tables a bit on Mr. McAuliffe and have a bit of fun ourselves.
In McAuliffe’s most recent fundraising report, there is a $25,000 contribution from Armor Correctional Health Services.
A handsome gift. Except Armor had a recent bout of extremely bad press down in Florida, where a man who it was later learned had suffered a stroke found himself in a jail staffed by Armor personnel. The man in question, Allen Hicks, died because he failed to receive timely treatment:
The failure to provide potentially life-saving treatment for Hicks as he suffered the early stages of a stroke raises questions about the quality of medical care in Hillsborough County jails, where for years a South Florida company has held a lucrative contract to treat prisoners.
That company, Armor Correctional Health Services Inc., paid $800,000 to Hicks’ estate, according to an out-of-court settlement approved in February by a probate judge. The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office paid an additional $200,000.
“It is clear that mistakes were made by Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office employees and contracted medical staff employed by Armor Correctional Health Services” in the handling of Hicks, the Sheriff’s Office said in a statement about the case to the Tampa Bay Times. “The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office took immediate responsibility for its actions and accountability for its mistakes by conducting a thorough review of the entire matter and working with Hicks’ family through their legal representatives to reach an amicable settlement.”
Sheriff’s Office documents also indicate the agency instituted new training on recognizing stroke symptoms for deputies and revoked the security clearance of two Armor administrative employees, effectively removing their ability to work in the jail. (The company is still under contract to provide medical services for Hillsborough County prisoners.)
Armor still has its contract, which includes a “…base pay rate ranging from roughly $53,000 to $60,000 per day, depending on the size of the jail population.”
So Armor’s contribution to McAuliffe wasn’t too costly. And yes, Armor has contracts with several Virginia correctional facilities.
But let’s look at another of Terry’s donors — Marc Lasry, who wrote McAuliffe a $75,000 check in the most recent fundraising period. The White House had picked Lasry to be our ambassador to France. But there was a hitch:
Lasry withdrew earlier this week without saying why, and the New York Post reported Friday that his withdrawal came days after the White House asked the FBI to look into whether he knew anyone involved in a recently charged gambling ring.
CNBC reports the FBI inquiry was the “last straw” and that the biggest sticking point for the Avenue Capital CEO’s candidacy for the ambassadorship was his investments.
Interesting. The Telegraph put this in a more colorful perspective:
Marc Lasry told investors in his $12 billion Avenue Capital fund that he was no longer pursuing the prestigious position, even though Mr Clinton recently said he was the White House pick for the job.
He announced his withdrawal just a week after the New York’s chief federal prosecutor charged 34 people in an alleged $100 million Russian-run poker money laundering operation.
Among those charged were Illya Trincher, the son of a professional poker player, who is accused of running the ring for multi-millionaire gamblers with Helly Nahmad, an elite Manhattan art dealer based in the Carlyle hotel.
Others arrested included Molly Bloom, the so-called “poker princess” who has organised games for celebrities such as Leonardo DiCaprio and Tobey Maguire.
Mr Lasry has played poker with some of the accused, including Mr Trincher, but it was a “complete surprise to him that they are accused of violating the law”, said a source close to the financier.
The life lesson here: avoid Russian-run poker games. Otherwise, that sweet gig in Paris ends up falling into the lap of the guy who made a fortune off The Muppets.
