From the Chicago Tribune

Governor on record pace for donations
In an 18-month period, Blagojevich takes in $10 million for war chest
By Ray Gibson and Ray Long
Tribune staff reporters
Published August 3, 2004

Gov. Rod Blagojevich has collected more than $10 million in campaign cash
after only 18 months in office, shattering fundraising records set by past
governors and building a political war chest that will be daunting to
potential opponents.
Campaign finance reports released Monday show Blagojevich, the Democratic
governor who has vowed to put an end to "business as usual" in Springfield,
has filled his campaign coffers with donations from an array of sources.
He's received significant contributions from unions, companies that get
state contracts and contributors to Democratic presidential candidates who
went 26 years without seeing a member of their party in the governor's
office.
"It is a staggering amount of money," said Kent Redfield, a political
science professor at the University of Illinois at Springfield and an expert
in campaign finance. "To be sitting on this kind of money two and a half
years before the election ... it's going to give pause to either a
Democratic or Republican challenge."
Though Blagojevich isn't facing an election for two years, his collection of
cash comes at a time when he finds himself at odds with his own party's
lawmakers and state office holders. As recently as last week during the
Democratic National Convention, Blagojevich continued a dispute over the
state budget that began months ago with House Speaker Michael Madigan, the
chairman of the state party.
But Blagojevich has said the more money he raises, the more independence he
has, saying he is not beholden to anybody. Still, the sheer amount of cash
Blagojevich has raised in such a short amount of time has been striking.
By comparison, former Gov. George Ryan raised almost $2.5 million in his
first 18 months in office, according to Redfield. Former Gov. Jim Edgar
raised $4.1 million in his first 18 months in office. One of the state's
most prolific fundraisers, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, reported on Monday
that he received no donations in the last six months. He has $3.2 million in
the bank.
In Ryan's 30 years on the political scene, the Kankakee Republican raised
about $40 million. Since June 2000, Blagojevich has raised nearly $36.4
million, Redfield said.
Kelly Glynn, a spokeswoman for Blagojevich's campaign fund, said the
governor is only preparing for an expensive race 2 1/2 years away.
"We need to be prepared to compete in two years," she said. "It is not going
to get any cheaper," she said, noting the costs for running campaigns are
escalating.
In the first six months of the year, Blagojevich received more than 1,000
donations for a total of about $5 million. And while some were donations of
$200 and $250, he received three donations of $100,000, 12 donations of
$50,000 and 28 contributions of $25,000 or more.
A company owned by William Brandt, a frequent fundraiser for President Bill
Clinton, was among those donating $100,000, as did the Democratic Governors'
Association and National Material of Elk Grove Village, normally a
Republican backer.
A. Finkl & Sons Co., the plant where Blagojevich's father used to work and a
frequent donor to his father-in-law, Chicago Ald. Dick Mell (33rd), donated
$50,000 to the governor, as did Chicago personal injury lawyer Robert
Clifford's law firm.
Clifford was among the lead negotiators representing trial lawyers during
the legislative session on the issue of reforming medical malpractice laws
in Illinois. The firm was among five law firms that gave $100,000 to the
Democratic Party of Illinois. But Blagojevich also received $50,000 from the
Illinois Hospital Association, which backed doctors in the dispute.
The session ended without a resolution.
Unions, long supporters of Blagojevich, also contributed to the governor,
who received $50,000 each from the Teamsters and the Service Employees
International Union, which has previously donated more than $800,000 to the
governor. The Illinois Laborers' Legislative Committee also gave Blagojevich
$55,000.
While in office, Blagojevich has supported pro-labor positions such as
increasing the minimum wage and pay equity for women , and he has made a
number of pro-labor appointments to state boards.
In Illinois, politicians and political committees reported on Monday
spending more than $400,000 in legal fees. Tens of thousands of those
expenditures stemmed from ongoing federal investigations in Chicago.
Cindy Davidsmeyer, a spokeswoman for state Sen. President Emil Jones
(D-Chicago), said $28,000 in legal payments reported Monday are legal bills
tied to a federal investigation of alleged legislative campaign work done on
taxpayer time.
Jones revealed the investigation last year when he told colleagues a federal
subpoena was sent seeking state work time sheets, campaign material,
computer disks and e-mail dating to 1998. Other disclosures showed Stuart
Levine and Kiferbaum Construction of Deerfield, both mentioned prominently
in a federal whistle-blower lawsuit, made contributions to a variety of
political funds. Jacob Kiferbaum allegedly told an Edward Hospital official
that the state Health Facilities Planning Board would reject a project in
Plainfield unless Kiferbaum's firm was used to build it, sources said.
Levine later stepped down from the health board, which has drawn federal
scrutiny. And he and Kiferbaum both resigned from a North Chicago medical
school board.
Over the years, Levine has been a prolific contributor to Republicans and
Democrats.
During the first half of 2004, Levine gave $5,000 to a political fund
overseen by Rep. Lee Daniels of Elmhurst and another $5,000 to a fund run by
the current House Republican leadership under Rep. Tom Cross of Oswego.
Kiferbaum also gave $5,000 to the House fund run by Cross and $1,000 to
state Rep. Jack Franks (D-Woodstock).
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