Idaho Democratic Rep. Walt Minnick's campaign will donate to charity $10,000 it received in 2008 from House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel, campaign spokesman John Foster said Tuesday.
Foster said Minnick made the decision to donate the $10,000 on Friday, the same day the House Ethics Committee admonished the New York congressman for taking two corporate-sponsored trips to the Carribean in violation of House rules.
"He's still deciding which groups will receive the money," Foster said in an e-mail. "It's a big donation, and he wanted to spend a few days thinking about it."
Foster spoke after the National Republican Congressional Committee issued a news release Tuesday morning asking whether Minnick would join other Democrats who are returning contributions from Rangel.
“Charlie Rangel has been embroiled in an ethical storm for years, but that hasn’t stopped Walt Minnick from lining his campaign coffers with his tainted money,” said NRCC Communications Director Ken Spain. “After accepting $10,000 in tainted campaign donations from the Harlem Democrat and twice voting to let him off the hook, Minnick is tied to this scandal whether he likes it or not. Will Minnick try to salvage what’s left of his political career and finally abandon Rangel and his campaign money?”
There is growing pressure to strip Rangel of his chairmanship. His home-town paper, The New York Times, Saturday called for Rangel's removal, citing his "arrogance" at a Thursday hearing on the matter.
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Minnick
Slam him if he takes it. Slam him if he gives it away. Yup, everythings normal.
Give it back to Rangel's CONTRIBUTORS not for Girl Scout Cookies
Why should THEY suffer?
If I get a can refund at Albertsons would I want they to give it to charity?
I want my nickel.
Why should charities benefit from sleaze? They aren't victims??? What in the world do they deserve?
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Stop whining about the stupid signature and think for yourself.
Idaho charities
I would encourage Minnick to donate the funds to Idaho charities for use in Idaho.
Conservative On Conservative Hate
Since it's next to impossible to paint Representative Minnick as a big spending liberal, I guess that the next best thing is guilt by association. Obviously the NRCC has to badmouth him for something or they wouldn't be doing their job, but putting him in the same league as Rangel is just a bunch of hyperbole.
The thing that has to have the NRCC in a real pinch is that, at least according to a UCSD study, Walt Minnick has the most conservative voting record of all Northwest representative and senators. And his record is actually more conservative than the middle of the Republican road.
If you ignore R's and D's, Walt Minnick actually seems like he's pretty much in the mainstream of Idaho politics. Go figure.
Here's a summary of VoteReview's study: http://www.ridenbaugh.com/index.php/2009/08/03/with-one-exception/
Minnick
Makes sense. Take the R or D away and you have someone interested in Idaho and doing exactly what he believes and his constituents, for the most part, want.
Rangel, Walt Minnick and the NRCC
As usual the NRCC is out to lunch. They bash anyone who isn't on their list of favorite sons regardless of the persons voting record. This party of NO is insisting they will reap profits in this years election. Let's just hide and watch how much they really reap, if anything. I thinks it's going to backfire on them so badly they will have their heads spinning.
Minnick
Golly, it is hard to imagine the NRCC taking a shot at Walt. Don't they know he is a Republican?
WAS
I think WAS would be more appropriate than "is." Regardless, his representation of Idaho and the interests of its citizens is commendable. I don't care what side of the aisle it is what he does that gets my vote.
Rangel is, was, always has been a crook
And...Minnick has voted to defend him all along.