Hatch war chest juiced up

WASHINGTON — XanGo's juice did not exist the last time Sen. Orrin Hatch ran for his Senate seat, but now as the Utah Republican prepares to win his sixth term, the Utah County nutritional drink company has become the top contributor to his campaign — and even added a member to his re-election team.

All six of XanGo's executives, and some of their spouses, have given $4,200 to Hatch, meeting the $2,100 limit for primary and general elections, based on an analysis of Federal Election Commission records and data compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics and PoliticalMoneyLine. All of the donations came in during an April 7, 2005, lunch with XanGo executives and a representative from Hatch's campaign, according to the company.

XanGo of Lehi is Hatch's top contributor to his $3.3 million campaign chest, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan group based in Washington, D.C., that tracks money in politics. Hatch has about $2 million in cash on hand. FEC data shows XanGo total contributions to be $44,200, although the company says $2,000 will be returned because it exceeded the legal individual contribution limit.

XanGo chairman and chief executive officer Gary Hollister originally donated $2,000 in February 2004 and then tried to donate $8,400 last April, which exceeds the legal limit. His wife, Beverly, made her own $4,200 donation or $2,100 per election, matching her husband's, so all of the money still made its way to Hatch.

The other executives, including president Aaron Garrity, executive vice president Joe Morton, executive vice president Gordon Morton, executive vice president of international relations Bryan Davis, and their spouses followed a similar route. Chief operating officer Kent Wood made contributions, but his wife did not, according to FEC records through Oct. 31, 2005. Some of the executives and their spouses gave about $10,000 to Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah, during the 2004 election.

Hollister said the executives each made the decision on his own to give to Hatch; there was no corporate pressure to make the contributions. The latest campaign contribution data will be updated on Jan. 31.

"Orrin has been very good to the supplement industry in the state of Utah," Hollister said in an interview. "We feel very strongly that he has been good to the state of Utah."

Hollister said being aware of what is going on politically is important for any business and that the contributions do not get the company anything specific.

The political contributions help the company be a "good corporate citizen," Hollister said.