Club for Growth

From SourceWatch

Club for Growth was "founded in 1999 by Steve Moore, National Review president Dusty Rhodes, Cato Institute president Ed Crane, Richard Gilder, economist and CNBC Kudlow & Cramer co-host Larry Kudlow, and other like-minded pro-growth conservatives." [1]

1 FEC Lawsuit
2 Background
3 Directors & Staff
4 Participation in 2006 Congresssional Race
- 4.1 Republican primaries
5 Contact Information
6 External links

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FEC Lawsuit

"The Federal Election Commission filed a lawsuit Monday [September 20, 2005,] in U.S. District Court in Washington against the Club for Growth, the first case of its kind to arise from high-dollar fundraising during the 2004 elections. The pro-Republican group spent at least $21 million in the 2003-2004 election cycle. ... The FEC contends the club spent enough in federal races to require it to file with the commission as a political committee and to follow contribution and spending limits. It wants the court to fine the group and order it to comply with campaign finance rules." --Associated Press, September 19, 2005.

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Background

Stephen Moore, now of the Wall Street Journal, founded the Club for Growth in 1999. The Hon. Patrick J. Toomey serves as the group's President. David Keating is the executive director.

According to Lobbyists.info, "The Club is primarily dedicated to helping elect pro-growth, pro-freedom candidates through political contributions and issue advocacy campaigns. Among the major economic growth issues the Club emphasizes are fundamental income tax reduction and simplification; school choice for all families; and personal investment of Social Security."

$2.4 million in campaign contributions from the Club for Growth helped elect 10 new Republicans to Congress in 2000. "The Club for Growth has grown six-fold since the 2000 election cycle and the Club and its members raised or donated over $10 million to help elect seventeen new Members of Congress in the 2002 election cycle." [2]

In the run up to the 2004 Democratic caucuses in Iowa, the PAC arm of Club for Growth ran advertisments attacking Presidential candidate Howard Dean. The advertisements characterized Howard Dean and his supporters as a "tax-hiking, government-expanding, latte-drinking, sushi-eating, Volvo-driving, New York Times-reading, body-piercing, Hollywood-loving, left-wing freak show."

Not even President George Walker Bush is immune from Club for Growth criticism. After Bush unveiled new programs costing billions of dollars in the 1/20/04 State of the Union Address, then Club president Stephen Moore criticized George Walker Bush as a "big government Republican." [3]

Longtime Republican benefactor Harlan Crow is a [former] member of the founders committee of the Club for Growth. [4]

"The group, which in the past has challenged moderate Republicans it considers big spenders, is running television spots targeting three GOP lawmakers who are undecided about private accounts: Sen. Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, Rep. Joe Schwarz of Michigan and Rep. Sherwood Boehlert of New York," the Chronicle reports. "The Club also plans to hire a full-time lobbyist to promote the private account plan on Capitol Hill."

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Directors & Staff

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Board of Directors

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Staff

Patrick J. Toomey, President
Chuck Pike, Vice President
David Keating, Executive Director
Adam Rozansky, Director of Operations
Andrew Roth, Director of Government Affairs
Erika Sather, Development Director
Stacy French, Office Administrator
Nachama Soloveichik, Communications Director
Stacie Smith, Development Assistant
Oliver Schwab, Membership Assistant

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Leadership Council

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Participation in 2006 Congresssional Race

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Republican primaries

On September 14, Toomey sent out a club bulletin summing up its activities in the Republican primaries (subscription required [5]:

"...the Club's PAC racked up 9 wins against just 4 losses. It's a record we're proud of, especially given that our endorsed candidates competed in races with nearly 50 major opponents. In most cases our candidate was the underdog, as in yesterday's Rhode Island race. The Washington Post reported yesterday that the Club's PAC "had an extremely successful run so far this cycle."

"And the Club's PAC scored its first-ever knockout of an incumbent when Tim Walberg defeated Rep. Joe Schwarz in the Michigan Republican primary. We accomplished something vitally important in Rhode Island despite the vote tally.

"Politicians are risk-adverse. Every Republican in Congress knows what we did in Rhode Island. They realize that Club members donated an incredible $725,000 to Chafee's challenger. They know that the Club for Growth PAC spent an additional $515,000, mostly on TV ads, and took a challenger from being down 2 to 1 in the polls to the edge of an upset. As senators cast their votes on key bills, wavering Republicans will have to wonder if they could withstand the same punishment.

"National Review yesterday wrote that Laffey's "loss was by no means an exercise in futility: Sometimes it's better to fight and lose than not to fight at all. Two years ago, Pat Toomey nearly defeated Sen. Arlen Specter in Pennsylvania's GOP primary. Yesterday, Laffey gave Chafee a genuine scare. Both Toomey and Laffey received crucial support from the Club for Growth [PAC]. Senators are a notoriously risk-averse crowd. And now, for the second election cycle in a row, Republican senators have received a sharp reminder that if they behave too much like liberals, they may not be senators for long."

The breakdown of club member support for the nine candidates according to the group's website was as follows:

Steve Laffey (RI)--no financial information listed.
Sharron Angle (NV)--"Club members contributed over $605,000..."[6]
Tim Walberg (MICH)--won over the incumbent with over $600,000 in donations from club members [7]
Doug Lamborn (CO)--won with over $200,000. [8]
Kevin Calvey (OK)--came in fourth after over $249,000. [9]
Phil Krinkie (MN)-- withdrew, as pledged, when he didn't receive the party's endorsement. Received over $154,000.[10]
Jim Jordon (OH)--won and received over $92,000. [11]
Henry Cueller (TX)--won and received over $170,000[12]
John Campbell (CA)--won in 2005 and received over $118,000. [13]