A draft opinion that the Federal Election Commission issued Friday indicates that it probably will reject a request from Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s re-election campaign to allow her to replace millions of dollars in contributions embezzled by her treasurer with new donations from the original donors. The FEC is likely to take a final vote on her request Thursday, but the issuance of just one draft advisory opinion is a signal of some consensus among commissioners. Feinstein’s campaign treasurer, Kinde Durkee, pleaded guilty last week to defrauding numerous California politicians of at least $7 million. Feinstein was the hardest hit, losing an estimated $4.5 million.
The senator had hoped that her largest supporters could contribute again without the original donation being counted against federal caps of $2,500 per election from individuals and $5,000 per election from political action committees. But the draft advisory said that any contributions deposited in a bank account or cashed must be counted against the cap.
… During a hearing last week, Durkee’s attorney, Daniel Nixon, agreed that her victims lost more than $7 million but disagreed with prosecutors’ claim that there were at least 50 victims. Prosecutors say Durkee controlled some 700 bank accounts and that she mingled the funds in those accounts without her client’s knowledge or authorization. She used some of the money to pay mortgages on her home and business, various business expenses and her mother’s care in a home for seniors. She also used the money to cover an array of personal expenses, involving Disneyland, Costco, Amazon.com, Ulta cosmetics and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Full Article: The Associated Press: FEC to deny California senior senator’s proposal.