This is a story that, rightly, will not go away until Tom Miller returns some money. Period.
On May 4, Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller published an op-ed in the Des Moines Register defending his decision to take hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from big-moneyed special interests in 2010 - nearly half of which he received after his October 13 announcement that he would lead a 50-state investigation into big bank foreclosure fraud. In his op-ed, Miller claimed that I presented the public with “false” and “misleading” statements in my own op-ed calling on Miller to return these campaign contributions.
We've had a very close working relationship with Miller for more than 20 years, and his service to Iowa is not in question. But Iowa CCI members' allegiance is to a set of values and principles, not to any political party, candidate, or elected official. What makes our organization sounique and very relevant is that our members are willing to hold public officials accountable to these values and principles.
http://www.iowacci.org/...
Miller's defensive op-ed a day earlier claimed thusly: "None of the contributions were from bank lobbyists."
Accusations are insulting
In all of these endeavors over the last decade, I worked very hard on behalf of consumers. The challenges were enormous. The frustrations in dealing with the big banks and bringing together everybody on our side were immense. The pressures of all kinds were at times very high. I did so, and continue to do so, eagerly because I believe strongly in serving homeowners.
To say that there is doubt about my commitment to homeowners is baseless, and it's an insult to all the hard work by me and my staff over the last 10 years.
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/...
CCI countered Miller's defensive whining with more facts of specific contributions by bank lobbyists:
My op-ed was based on an April 21 report by the National Institute on Money In State Politics that heavily criticized Miller for accepting $261,445 in campaign contributions from out of state lawyers and lobbyists. Both Rolling Stone and Time magazine have reported on these ties. Even the Dubuque Telegraph Herald, Miller’s hometown newspaper, raised questions last Sunday asking why Miller has backed away from his tough talk about throwing banksters in jail in an editorial titled “Iowa AG owes explanation”.
There’s actually more to this story than what’s been reported so far. One thing that hasn’t been reported in the press yet is the fact that Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase and Citigroup – three of the big banks being investigated by Miller - gave more than $200,000 to the Democratic Attorneys General Association in 2010. Miller received $50,000 from the association in 2010. This is even more evidence that the big banks are actively trying to undermine the investigation by attempting to buy a favorable outcome.
Another campaign contribution to Miller that has also to date gone unreported in the media is a $10,000 donation on October 19 from Linda Killinger, the wife of Kerry Killinger, a former CEO of Washington Mutual. Kerry Killinger is currently being sued by the FDIC after the collapse of Washington Mutual, the largest bank failure in history.
If the banks are lining the pockets of the lead Attorney General in charge of the states' task force on protecting consumers from the banksters who created and are continuing the fraud in the home mortgage industry, then what other attorneys general are also on the receiving end of big campaign contributions?
This is not an Iowa problem, do your homework.