From the Associated Press 

 Papers: DeLay Group Used $100K for Races 
By SHARON THEIMER, Associated Press Writer 
 
WASHINGTON - Tom DeLay's political group used nearly $100,000 in corporate and unlimited donations to mail last-minute political appeals praising five congressional candidates despite rules meant to keep such money out of federal races, documents released Thursday show. 
 
The records also detail payments DeLay's group made to Jim Ellis and Warren Robold, two longtime fundraisers indicted in Texas in the same state campaign finance case as DeLay. All three men say they are innocent in that case. 
 
The documents from the Federal Election Commission's audit of DeLay's Americans for a Republican Majority PAC (ARMPAC) were obtained by Political Money Line, a group that studies campaign fundraising. 
 
They show DeLay's ARMPAC sent money from its so-called soft-money account before the November 2002 election to pay for mailings for such candidates as Indiana Republican Chris Chocola, who won election to the House that year. 
 
An ARMPAC mailing to gun-owning voters in Chocola's race for an open congressional seat praised him as someone who "will protect the sporting traditions that Indiana sportsmen have passed on. For future generations to continue to enjoy our heritage, we need the leadership of Chris Chocola." 
 
Mailings were also sent to thousands of voters in another Indiana congressional district and House races in Florida, Kansas and Iowa, the records show. 
 
At issue is the difference between unlimited soft money donations — usually from corporations, unions and wealthy people — that cannot be spent on candidates and hard money donations from individuals that are strictly limited in size but can be spent on candidates. 
 
The Chocola mailing didn't use words like "vote for" that would clearly ban the use of soft money, but its timing "a week before the general election may give rise to questions as to whether or not it was meant to impact on a federal election," said Kent Cooper, co-founder of Political Money Line and the FEC's former chief of public disclosure. 
 
Cooper also cited another document, a June 2002 American Express bill, that shows ARMPAC mixed hard money and soft money spending by DeLay, Ellis, Ferro and others on travel, meals and various other expenses using the same account. 
 
FEC auditors found ARMPAC may have improperly spent about $200,000 in soft money and ARMPAC has already repaid that amount. The commission has declined to say whether it is pursuing further legal action. 
 
DeLay attorney Don McGahn was not immediately available for comment. 
 
Under a campaign finance law that took effect after the 2002 elections, DeLay can no longer raise soft money for ARMPAC. 
 
DeLay's fundraising from corporations is under increasing scrutiny, as well as how that money was spent. He and several political associates have been indicted in Texas on charges they illegally channeled corporate money into state legislative races. 
 
The FEC documents show Ellis' consulting firm was paid $5,000 a month from ARMPAC's hard-money account and $2,000 from its soft-money arm in the 2001-02 election cycle. 
 
A consulting firm co-owned by DeLay's daughter, Danielle Ferro, had a contract with ARMPAC under which it was to be paid $4,000 a month during the 2001-02 election cycle. 
 
And Alexander Strategies, a consulting firm that employed DeLay's wife Christine and was run by former DeLay congressional chief of staff Ed Buckham, was paid $8,400 a month.