MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) – Some Republican presidential hopefuls who attend a gala fundraiser next month will be writing checks instead of collecting them.
The chairman of the state’s cash-strapped Republican Party is asking presidential candidates to pay $10,000 each for what he calls “a premium speaking opportunity” at the June 6 event. For that price, candidates get the ability to decide who introduces them, tickets to a private reception with major donors and other perks. A less expensive package, priced at $5,000, also is available.
So far, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback’s campaigns have agreed to contribute $10,000, while Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo’s campaign will pay $5,000, said GOP chairman Fergus Cullen. Candidates whose campaigns contribute less won’t be barred from the podium, he said, but the top contributors will get top billing.
Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Arizona Sen. John McCain and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani are not expected to attend due to schedule conflicts, Cullen said. California Rep. Duncan Hunter and former Virginia gov. Jim Gilmore will attend, though their contribution levels are “under discussion.”
Though the notion of “paying to play” is uncommon in New Hampshire, Cullen said he makes no apology for aggressively “seeking a way that the candidates can help our party as they are seeking our party’s nomination.”
He pointed out that Democratic presidential candidates have donated at least $130,000 to the state Democratic party. Democratic Party Chairman Ray Buckley said that figure represents the $65,000 that Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama’s campaigns paid for the party’s extensive voter files.
Some Republican campaigns criticized the request, while others had no problem with it.
“Asking people to contribute $5,000 or $10,000 in order to speak to the same activists candidates can speak to in living rooms across the state is contradicting what the New Hampshire primary is all about,” said Michael Biundo, a New Hampshire consultant for former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson.
He said the Thompson campaign will buy a table of 10 for $1,250 and hopes to see Thompson at the podium anyway.
Cullen concurred, saying he will not prohibit any credible candidate from speaking. He said he came up with the idea when he wasn’t sure how many candidates would appear.
“If we had 10 or 12, I was not going to have 12 consecutive 10-minute speeches,” he said. “I was thinking of ways to break it up, perhaps having some go before dinner and some after.”
Tancredo’s state campaign manager Shelly Uscinski called the idea unhealthy for the already embattled primary.
“If every time you want to do something in the state, and there’s a charge involved, it could have an effect on what happens in the future,” she said. “Any party that wants to take advantage of the candidates this time runs the risk of finding that candidates may not come here again in future cycles.”
Michael Dennehy, a former state GOP director who now is a top consultant to McCain, said Cullen is trying his best to raise money “and trying to think of a creative way to do it and not be overly obnoxious about it.”
“Whether asking for $10,000 to speak is the best way to do it, he’s trying to do something,” he said.
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Information from: New Hampshire Union Leader, http://www.unionleader.com
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Information from: New Hampshire Union Leader, http://www.unionleader.com
AP-ES-05-26-07 1315EDT
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