Posted: May 2, 2012 at 7:32 am

Hill Campaign Financed by Convicted Felons

Rick Hill set the bar high when he first ran for congress.

He attacked his opponent in the press for taking money from an organization he said “had ties to organized crime.”

An Associated Press article (pasted below the fold) from ’96 quoted Hill as saying:

“The fact that he took this contribution is arrogant, insensitive to our Montana values and insulting to Montana voters.”

As it turns out, Congressman Hill has himself taken large sums of money from well-known convicted felons.

Super-lobbyist Jack Abramoff, Former Congressman Tom Delay, and former Montana Businessman Dick Dasen have exactly two things in common.

1.       They’re convicted felons.

2.       They finance Congressman Rick Hill’s campaigns.

Tom Delay is the former U.S. House Majority Leader.  Delay is also a convicted felon who contributed $5000 from his Americans for a Republican Majority (ARMPAC) – as well as $1,000 from his Congressional Committee PAC – to Congressman Hill’s campaigns. Delay earned his felony conviction after he was found guilty of conspiring to circumvent a state law against corporate contributions to political campaigns.  Specifically, that meant conviction for one charge of money laundering, and one charge of conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Dick Dasen – a felon and former Montana businessman – contributed $500 to Congressman Hill. He later was convicted in Montana on five counts of sex charges related to a major prostitution scandal.   Dasen spent an estimated $1 million to $5 million for women to have sex with him, usually in hotels.

Jack Abramoff is a convicted felon and former lobbyist who amassed a fortune by bilking Indian tribes of millions of dollars.  His fortune allowed him to contribute $250 to Congressman Hill.  He later plead guilty to fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy to bribe public officials in a wide-ranging, D.C. corruption scandal.  Furthermore, he plead guilty to fraud and conspiracy charges related to the casino boats he bought.

And so, it looks like Congressman Hill’s hypocrisy is coming back to haunt him.   Besides treating his staff like dog crap and being a terrible boss, this former congressman has a seedy crowd of convicts who have funded his political endeavors.

 

Here’s Full-Text of Associated Press piece referenced above:

 

The Associated Press

October 23, 1996

Hill: Yellowtail Takes Money From Union With Mob Ties

By BOB ANEZ

HELENA (AP) – Republican U.S. House candidate Rick Hill has attacked Democratic opponent Bill Yellowtail for accepting a campaign contribution from a labor union with alleged ties to organized crime.

Hill said Yellowtail should return the $2,500 donation from the Laborers’ Political League, which is an arm of the Laborers’ International Union.

He called Yellowtail’s acceptance of the money “an insult to Montanans and further proof that the Yellowtail campaign is devoid of standards when it comes to winning this election.”

Yellowtail responded Wednesday, saying the contribution was made at the request of the union’s Montana members. “I’m pleased to be supported by the more than 2,000 Montana working folks who happen to be members of the Laborers’ union,” he said.

Yellowtail played down U.S. Justice Department accusations of connections between the union and the Mafia.

“We can allege all kinds of things, but until such time as there are convictions and there is proof, it’s a different matter,” he said. “I’m focused on the fact that unions use a democratic process to request endorsement and contributions. It’s the Montana roots of this support that’s valuable to me.”

Hill’s criticism stems from a 212-page draft racketeering complaint that the Justice Department used to force the Laborers’ general executive board to begin reforming the union in February 1995.

The complaint alleged Arthur Coia, who became union president in 1993, and three previous presidents dating back to 1926, “have associated with, and been controlled and influenced by, organized crime figures.”

It listed former Laborers’ officials and associates who have been convicted of Mafia-related crimes, including killings and kickback schemes.

“The enterprise has been, and continues to be, a captive labor organization which has been continuously and systematically controlled, exploited, and dominated in the conduct of its affairs by La Cosa Nostra,” the complaint said.

Rather than take the union to court, the Justice Department negotiated a deal that left Coia in charge while former Justice attorneys and investigators were hired to root out corruption.

“It is intolerable,” Hill said, “that Mr. Yellowtail would not only allow this union to support his candidacy, but that by doing so, he basically invited their involvement in Montana politics.

“The fact that he took this contribution is arrogant, insensitive to our Montana values and insulting to Montana voters,” he said.

Yellowtail said the money he received from the Laborers’ Union represents about $1.50 for every member of the union in Montana and that’s not a very large amount.

“The reason I received this contribution is because these Montana workers endorsed me and requested the contribution from their international,” he said. “They appreciate the work I have done over the years” in supporting a higher minimum wage and opposing right-to- work proposals.

“They know they don’t support Rick Hill because he has advocated a sales tax and they resent his balancing the work comp system on the backs of working people by means of $40 million tax imposed on them,” he added.

Yellowtail was referring to Hill’s work in lobbying the 1993 Legislature for passage of a sales tax referendum and his role as a director of the state workers’ compensation program which relies on an employee payroll tax to help pay off a large deficit.

30 comments

    • larry kurtz

      “The GOP’s trouble with women is showing itself in this contest. Rehberg is up by a point with men but that is more than offset by Tester’s 51-41 advantage with women. There is also a pretty significant generational gap in the contest with Rehberg up 9 with seniors but losing all of the younger age groups to Tester.

      Republicans meanwhile have the early advantage in the race to replace Rehberg in the House, although the big winner is ‘undecided’ given how unknown all the candidates are. Presumptive GOP nominee Steve Daines is up 33-27 on Kim Gillan and 36-25 on Franke Wilmer.

      Gillan is the modest early favorite to win the Democratic nomination.”

    • Mark Tokarski

      Why is it that Democrats prefer right wingers to fill office? Just asking – Gillan would be comfortable as a Republican, and would her runner up, Smith.

      An eagle with two right wings flies in circles.

      • Rob Kailey

        Obviously just to annoy you, Mark.

        (Has it occurred to you that the whopping 41% of undecided Democratic voters are ‘undecided’ between Wilmer, Strohmeier and Stutz? You know, that they are actually considerate progressives? No? It hadn’t occurred to you? Well color me surprised.)

        • Farmboy

          Im stuck right now between Strohmeier, Rankin, and Wilmer, and voting in the Republican primary. Cant make up my mind.

  3. lisa o'conner

    This poll was done before the Strohmaier ad went on air. I’d like to see it done after it had some real money behind it. I would expect Strohmaier to beat Wilmer and Smith at that point.

  4. Dave Skinner

    I thought this was about convicted felons?
    Never mind none of these guys were felons at the time of the contributions.

  5. Farmboy

    The Republicans have been playing this dirty politics game for years, lets review. Election 2000, Schwietzer was rumored to have bought illegal pesticide from Canada, and Nancy Keenan was rumored to be a lesbian. Election 2004 Schwietzer was rumored to have done a shady land deal in Rosebud County, still wins the election. 2006 Conrad Burns got caught with his hands in the cookie jar, aka taking campaign donations from his good buddy Jack Abramoff, also tried to help another buddy an outfitter Mac White try to close up the Crazy Mountains to the public down in southwestern Montana. Also Burns went to the Billings airport and yelled at the firefighters, result Jon Tester a farmer from Big Sandy becomes US Senator. 2008 Schwietzer was called a bully. Finnally 2010 Dennis McDonald was rumored to be a mob lawyer and a bad guy. Now this year, here we are.

  6. Edd

    The timing of their contributions in relation to the time of their convictions doesn’t change the inherent felonious nature of their character.

  7. Dan T.

    What’s Hill doing with his head. It looks like he’s checking for headlice. He probably doesn’t like having to be stuck in a room with all those plebes who are also on the ballot.

  10. G6

    Each of those donors has 3 things in common actually:

    1. They’re convicted felons.

    2. They finance Congressman Rick Hill’s campaigns.

    3. They were all convicted WELL AFTER they donated to Rick Hill

    I’m not going to be an apologist for Rick Hill. I don’t like the guy. To say that a candidate should somehow be able to predict that someday a donor would be a criminal is a far stretch. It’s one thing to take a donation with knowledge of a shady donor, it’s another thing to expect a candidate to predict the future and know the personal integrity and morality of every single donor.

    You have a well-read site here. It’s a shame that you use it to post absolute garbage when you could be making valid arguments in favor or against substantive policy issues in our state. You’re doing your community a major disservice by using this asset for pure partisan smut when you could be using it to actually further our community. You should be ashamed of yourself.

    • sNowWayter

      Um…I think your herd of pet rocks needs arranging. Your mom said she was sick of having them thrown about her basement willy-nilly.

    • Dan T.

      This site is well-read because people like what they read and we like to chat about it. If you don’t, feel free to read something elsewhere.

    • dashbored

      The hypocrisy of the thing is what G6 is missing. Hill attacked his congressional opponent up and down the block for the supposedly doing the same, but no one is allowed to point that out? Hill’s lackeys are going to have to do better.

    • Dan T.

      Perhaps you’d like to discuss the issues of GOP legislators love of donkey porn and hatred of black people? I’ve always wondered what the deal is with these aspects of the GOP platform.

  11. G6

    What hypocrisy? Yellowtail’s contribution was from a donor who, at the time of the donation, was alleged by the DOJ to have ties to the mafia. Let me repeat, AT THE TIME OF THE DONATION. If you truly believe Rick Hill can accurately predict the future, why wouldn’t you vote for him…?

    • Dan T.

      Sigh. Alleged, but not convicted? got it.

      You’re trying to say that Charles Manson was Citizen of the Year before he got caught hacking people up. Not gonna’ fly. Gave me a good chuckle though.

    • Larry Kralj, Environmental Rangers

      AND SOLID NUTJOB TOO! See below! This is some wack stuff, dude! I mean, who really GIVES two shits whether or not he’s “pro-traditional family”? Why does’t he just say it. He hates gays!

      And really, “equal justice not social justice”? What the hell does THAT horsehit mean? Hell, I speak pretty fair wackjob and I can’t even make sense of that one!

      Oh, and I see that he believes in the “original intent of the Constitution”. Uh huh. Yeah right! I’ll lay you good money the dude couldn’t write a 250 word coherent summary of that statement! Constitutional scholar, is he?

      More liberty? Typical Teatard nonsense.

      Just from what he’s written here, it’s obvious that he’s reached his level of competence as a farmer! NOT a framer of our Constitutional debates! Sorry to be so blunt.

      Pro-life.
      Pro-traditional family.
      Pro-second amendment.
      Equal justice, not social justice.
      More liberty, less regulation.
      Conservationist, not an environmentalist.
      Believes in the original intent of the U.S. Constitution.
      It is past time to balance the budget.
      Raising the debt limit only encourages more deficit spending.

  13. Tom

    I cannot understand why this blog is so popular. There is no serious discussion of the policy solutions needed to fix our state and our planet, yet what gets posted here is all people talk about. Why not start a serious dialogue about the policy changes America needs to move forward?

    • Norma Duffy AKA ILIKEWOODS

      Go for it buddy! You’ll find we listen………. and discuss serious problems here.

    • Dem Dame

      Exactly, if you don’t find the horrific goals of the republican party a matter of serious concern than I don’t know what is. The montana GOP is pushing candidates that will make incredibly bad policy decisions. If that doesn’t concern you, seek help.

    • Larry Kralj, Environmental Rangers

      Tom, perhaps you’ve heard of the game Whack a Mole?

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D0n8N98mpes

      Well, here we play something similar called Whack a Troll! You see, we do TRY to have serious discussions, and we actually do have them sometimes. But many times, we simply have to whack the fascist trolls that show up!

      Sure it’s kinda distracting, but it’s always quite fun. You see, rightwing wackos are not USED to being challenged. Hence, they think that they’re always right. But when they show up here, as they do frequently, they get WHACKED! And it’s important for them to be publicly embarrassed. It takes the wind right outta their sails! And shows them for the fools that they are. Then, they slink back to hate radio and their little rightie sites that no one reads!

      And they HATE that! That’s why all their little nazi masters tell them to post on the blogs. Problem IS though, that when they show up here, we throttle them! Hard to go back and tell your master that you got your ass handed to you! Again!

      But you’re right. Eventually, the nutjobs get tired of getting their asses kicked and simply move on. And then, we can return the serious discussions of issues that you mention.