Democratic Party officials said their fund-raising totals included $6.5 million for the Obama Victory Fund. Obama held fund-raisers in Austin, Texas; Boston; and Washington during the month. In April, the victory fund collected about $7 million during Obama’s first month as a candidate for reelection.
Obama is headlining several fund-raisers before the June 30 deadline for the fund-raising quarter, including events this week in Washington and New York.
Through the end of May, the DNC said it had $16.5 million cash on hand, compared with $6.1 million for the RNC. The DNC had $13.5 million in debt, compared with $18.5 million for the RNC.
RNC chairman Reince Priebus has focused on improving the party’s balance sheets after taking over from his predecessor, Michael Steele, in January. RNC officials estimate that they inherited $24 million in debt when Priebus started as chairman; officials said they reduced that by a half-million dollars in May. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
Judge rules against Sununu in airline consulting lawsuit
WASHINGTON — A judge is handing former White House chief of staff John Sununu a loss in a suit over a half-million-dollar consulting fee and a warning against handshake deals.
Along with his business partner, the former top aide to President George H.W. Bush sued Philippine Airlines in 1998 after it refused to pay them a $520,000 “success fee’’ for negotiating an aircraft lease agreement.
US District Judge Royce Lamberth ruled for the airline yesterday but accused it of “stinginess’’ for enforcing formal terms of a contract in spite of the consultants’ earnest efforts. Lamberth says the consultants were accustomed to relying on personal relationships in business dealings but “made a reckless bet’’ by trusting the airline.
Lamberth closes his opinion with some practical advice: “When it doubt, write it out.’’ — ASSOCIATED PRESS
