Romney spending big bucks in Utah
New campaign financial disclosure reports, analyzed by the Deseret Morning News, show that while Romney has raised $3.8 million from Utahns, he's also spent $605,442 here. That is more, for example, than any local congressional candidate or any candidate for that matter has spent here this election cycle.
What is Romney buying?
He spent $30,000 on Mitt Romney bobblehead dolls from Asian Sources in Cedar Hills (a small company owned by his brother-in-law, Rod Davies). They were given to donors who gave at least $96 to the campaign during its "Sign Up America" day that sought to gain 24,000 new supporters in 24 hours.
Also, the campaign spent more than $22,000 to cater events when Romney or top officials visited the state, from nearly $9,400 at the Gateway Grille in Kamas to $1,500 at the Deer Valley Resort.
The campaign paid Shannon Norton of Lehi $3,000 to photograph Romney events here. It paid $720 to a valet parking firm. Romney spent about $170,000 on local high-tech companies consulting on Web services.
But the really big money about 70 percent of all that Romney spent here, or more than $450,000 went to strategists who are helping him figure out how to raise money. Whatever they are doing is working well in this state, since an eighth of all that Romney has raised nationally has come from Utahns.
Most strategists are not talking about what exactly they do to help raise funds and what groups they are targeting and how. Interestingly, many of them also do not list business or home phone numbers.
Campaign consultants
The local operation is run, in part, by John R. Miller, a Midwestern millionaire with a home in Deer Valley, where Romney also owns a home. Miller's John R. Miller Enterprises (as listed on the campaign reports) has an office on the top floor of the Wells Fargo Building in downtown Salt Lake City. But the firm's telephone number is not listed, and an assistant to Miller at the plush office said the firm is not actually a business.
John R. Miller Enterprises was paid $29,924 for "finance/travel," Romney's campaign filings show. Miller did not return telephone calls for comment.
The person who received the most for "finance consulting" $141,723 was Karen Hammond of Farmington. She did not respond to a note left at her home seeking comment about what exactly she does for the campaign, and the campaign did not return phone calls about it.
Another fund-raising strategist who did not return phone calls was Don Stirling, manager of Rainmaker Sports & Entertainment (where his partners are Utah Jazz owner Larry H. Miller and Blake Roney, chairman of Nu Skin Enterprises.) Rainmaker was paid $75,000, or $15,000 a month for the past five months for "finance consulting," reports show.
Recent comments
Just wanted to make two points:
1- Romney is his own largest...
PlanetKobol | Aug. 22, 2007 at 4:01 p.m.
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