Opportunity and Freedom PAC, and its two siblings, Opportunity and Freedom PAC numbers 1 and 2, were meant to be heavyweight sluggers for Republican Rick Perry, providing big-budget support for his second presidential bid. But Perry himself turned out to be a welterweight at best. The former Texas governor entered the race late, raised a skimpy $1.1 million by June 30 and “suspended” his campaign barely two months later. “We had a plan,” political consultant Austin Barbour, senior advisor to the superPACs, told NPR. “To me it also represents the peak of spending absolutely foolish money. It’s not rational, but I love it.”
Darwin Deason, a Texas billionaire about his 205-foot mega-yacht. He donated $5 million to a superPAC supporting Rick Perry. He wanted it back after Perry dropped out and got it
The plan began with more than a month of TV ads in Iowa, starting when Perry announced. It took a new course when Perry’s campaign coffers emptied out and the superPACs poured money into Iowa field operations. Finally, Perry’s withdrawal in the early rounds of the primary season left the superPACs with the plan mostly unimplemented and $13 million unspent.
So what happened to that $13 million? It’s gone back to the donors – mainly Dallas businessmen Darwin Deason and Kelcy Warren. “The wire transfers have already been processed,” Barbour said Friday evening.
Full Article: What Happens To All That SuperPAC Money When A Candidate Drops Out : It’s All Politics : NPR.