Rove Republican "Friday the 13th" Fundraiser Blurs Ethical Lines

Where does the Party end and the "superPAC" begin?

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, April 13th, 2012
CONTACT: Joanne Kron, Executive Director at 303-991-1900

DENVER: With Karl Rove, former top political aide to George W. Bush turned head of notorious "SuperPAC" American Crossroads, hosting an official fundraiser for the Colorado Republican Party this evening, ProgressNow Colorado, the state's largest online progressive advocacy organization, called on both Rove and Colorado Republican Party chairman Ryan Call to explain the apparent conflict of interest.

"Since when is it ethical for the head of a so-called 'superPAC' to raise money for the Republican Party?" asked ProgressNow Colorado executive director Joanne Kron. "It's bad enough that American Crossroads is buying up advertising time to spread proven falsehoods. To host an official Republican Party fundraiser while serving as the head of a supposedly 'uncoordinated' political attack group shows contempt both for the law and the voters' intelligence."

In today's Denver Post, Colorado Republican Party chairman Ryan Call claims the reason tonight's dinner is closed to the media is that Rove "is going to be talking about upcoming strategy." [1] In a separate article, The Denver Post reports that Rove's group American Crossroads has already spent over $1.1 million in Colorado alone this election season. [2]

In 2003, Rove helped Republicans launch an illegal 'midnight gerrymander' of state legislative districts. [3] Rove resigned from the Bush White House in 2007 under a cloud of political scandal. [4]

"Is the worst yet to come?" asked Kron. "Secretary of State Scott Gessler has rolled back disclosure limits in Colorado election law, including on party committees, at the same time Karl Rove is here to make a mockery of election law with a fundraiser for the Colorado Republican Party. But for Karl Rove, in a pattern that goes back for years, unethical dealings are business as usual."

###