Hoo Owns the Candidates: Jim Banks

I know it's spelled wrong. I'm branding. Throw me a friggin' bone here.

Jim Banks Photo: Alex Wong | Credit: Getty Images || Kyle Larson Photo: Chris Graythen | Getty Images

This is the first in a series entitled “Hoo Owns the Candidates?” wherein we look at the money flowing into the coffers of Hoosier political candidates as they gear up for 2024. Today, we look at Congressman Jim Banks (R-IN03), at this point the lone Republican entrant into the U.S. Senate race to replace Mike Braun, who is vacating his seat to run for Governor.

I’ll admit it. I'm a bad Hoosier. I’m not a racing guy. I’ve been to the 500 a few times. It’s a great party. The race was an afterthought, though the roar immediately following “gentlemen, start your engines” is a good reminder to wake up from your drunk nap and start drinking again. My stepdad took us to a demolition derby at South Bend Motor Speedway when I was maybe ten years old. He took us to see monster trucks, too. Do Bigfoot and Grave Digger count as race cars? Probably the same way a hotdog counts as a sandwich. Discuss amongst yourselves. Either way, these activities were fun as hell for a kid, but as an adult, they just seem wasteful. These days, I live a mile and a half down the road from Bloomington Speedway. My primary interaction with racing is to stay inside, close all the windows, and turn up the music on Friday nights from April through September.

You know what is neat about racing, though? Those awesome jumpsuits! Not only do they protect you from burns in a fiery crash, they serve as a useful metaphor:

…if you want to know how your congressmen and senators are going to vote […] maybe they should be like NASCAR drivers. They should actually have to have jackets with the names of all the people who are sponsoring them. Wouldn't that be cool? Then you might have a clue to why the fuck they voted that way.

- Robin Williams, “Weapons of Self Destruction” 2009

Now, Williams wasn’t the first to make the observation. Snopes did a whole fact-check on it, tracing the idea back to journalist Don Noel in a 1995 Hartford Courant article. I’ve seen many iterations, but I particularly like this image of then-House Speaker John Boehner from a dozen years ago.

originally posted by an anonymous Reddit user in 2011

So, you get the idea, but…Hey!!! Wait a second? NiSource? I grew up in Northern Indiana. I know that one. That’s NIPSCO! The soundtrack of my early years was punctured frequently by the adults in my life cursing that very same local electric monopoly. I had the dishonor of cursing them myself for a couple years. I didn’t know they owned a stake in John Boehner. With the former Speaker of the House long-retired, I’m sure they’ve since sold at quite a profit, having gotten a nice return on their investment. Enough of a return that NiSource has had an extra $3.8 billion laying around to use on stock buybacks since 2010, goosing value for shareholders when they could have used the windfall to go green more quickly or pay workers better. In a sane America, utilities like NiSource would be publicly owned, but whaddya gonna do?

Mike Meyers in 1997’s Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery. It has NOT aged well, though better than Jim Carey’s 1994 film Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. I quote them both frequently, but in 2023 they’re, as the kids say, kinda cringe.

Sadly, the Federal Elections Commission doesn’t publish a handy color picture guide like NASCAR, each candidate for office plastered in the logos of their corporate sponsors. They do, however, have a robust searchable database containing every penny candidates have received and spent in each federal election since 1993, with other historical data available to at least 1976. This will give you a line-by-line itemized receipt of every donation to any campaign. You can search for individual donors and organizational donors. When searching through the organizations, you run into a lot of PACs. Many of these political action committees serve as the fundraising arms of various corporate interests, business groups, or “social welfare” organizations. Some are bound to a certain candidate or party. It’s largely a giant money laundering scheme used to obfuscate the original source of the money. I mean, who knows how much Russian blood-oil money found its way to your local Republican via the NRA? Still, you get a pretty good idea where the money comes from. When the PAC has an obscure name, Open Secrets also makes an excellent source. You can play along at home. So, using those tools, let’s see “Hoo Owns the Candidates?”

Hoo Owns Jim Banks?

In 2018, the average winning U.S. Senate candidate spent $15.7 million to win their race. With that kind of bar to entry, you’re gonna need a whole lotta sponsor patches on your firesuit, as it were. Despite Banks’ extremism, he has proven a prolific fundraiser and the Republican field has essentially been cleared for him, former Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels (who busted Indiana unions, disenfranchised Indiana voters, and defunded Planned Parenthood) deemed too moderate by the biggest donors. In just the first three months of 2023, Banks’ campaign raised over $1.2 million. So let’s have a look at those big spenders. Who really, really wants Jim Banks to be Indiana’s next U.S. Senator? And to whom will Banks owe favors if he gets there? The following have all given AT LEAST $5000 to his Senate campaign as of the last FEC mandatory quarterly filing in April, and they generally fall in one of four categories:

CORPORATE PACs: A type of “connected PAC” that receives and raise money from managers and shareholders of a single corporation.

• AKSM Urology PAC $5000 - Columbus, OH based American Kidney Stone Management, Ltd. ("AKSM"), a medical device manufacturer that partners with urologists around the country on joint ventures. It appears such ventures used to be illegal until successful lobbying got a carveout for lithotripsy.

• AM General PAC $5000 - South Bend, IN based defense contractor; maker of military vehicles like the Humvee. They give about equally to Democrats and Republicans, a vivid illustration of the bipartisan nature of the military-industrial complex.

• Anthem, Inc. PAC $5000 - This would be the political arm of Indianapolis-based health insurance giant Elevance Health. They rebranded? To that? I hope somebody got fired. Listen to this stupid word salad of business-speak: the new names “will optimize and streamline the company’s brand portfolio, reduce complexities, and further underscore its evolution to deliver solutions beyond traditional health insurance, simplify the healthcare experience, and advance health beyond healthcare.” They inevitably spent millions on the rebrand, which was available because insurers have lobbied politicians like Banks for decades to keep the American healthcare system for-profit. We’re the only major country on the planet to run their healthcare system in such an asinine way.

• Applied Research Associates, Inc. PAC $5000 - ARA is a New Mexico-based research and engineering firm. Analytics. Defense. Infrastructure. So, they likely rely on government contracts for most of their business. A newish PAC. Donates to both parties. Gotta keep ALL the wheels greased.

• BAE Systems, Inc. PAC $5000 - From Wikipedia: BAE is a British multinational arms, security, and aerospace company based in London. It is the largest defense contractor in Europe and ranked the seventh-largest in the world.

• Dell Technologies PAC $5000 - “Dude, you’re getting money from Dell!”

• Elevance Health PAC $10,000 - We just saw these guys. Dirty double-dipping motherfuckers. Is this a campaign finance violation? Would somebody smarter than me check into that?

• Florida East Coast Industries Good Government Committee PAC $5000 - FECI is Florida's largest commercial real estate, transportation, and infrastructure holding company. That’s a mouthful. Maybe they should’ve picked something snappier.

• H&R Block, Inc. PAC $5000 - Obviously the political arm of the country’s largest tax preparation company. They, along with others in the tax prep industry, have long lobbied representatives of both parties to keep tax-filing complicated and pricey.

• Indiana Farm Bureau Inc. Elect PAC $5000 - The Indiana Farm Bureau has given overwhelmingly to Republican candidates over the years. An article published by The Nation in 2012 details the American Farm Bureau’s role, despite their everyman branding, as lobbyists for giant agribusinesses like Monsanto, Cargill, Tyson, and ADM.

• L3Harris Technologies, Inc. PAC $10,000 - Historically gave almost exclusively to Republicans. Has been about 50/50 since 2008. L3Harris is the #6 defense contractor the country, specializing in surveillance technology, microwave weaponry, and electromagnetic warfare.

• Marathon Petroleum Corporation Employees PAC $10,000 - This is obviously the political arm of the oil & gas giant. As you’d suspect, they’ve given almost exclusively to climate-change-denying Republicans (but I see you in there too, former Indiana Senator Joe Donnelly).

• NiSource, Inc. PAC $10,000 - I’ve said my piece about these guys.

• Nucor Corporation PAC $5000 - Nucor is a Charlotte, NC-based steel manufacturer. They are the largest steel producer in the United States and the biggest scrap recycler in North America. In 2000, Nucor settled a $100 million pollution lawsuit brought by the EPA and Department of Justice. They’re still polluting.

• POET PAC $10,000 - No haiku. No sonnets. Sioux Falls, SD-based POET is the world’s largest producer of biofuels. For all the excited talk of biofuels as green energy, the entire industry largely exists as a scam to funnel government money into the pockets of investors.

• Rolls-Royce NA Holdings, Inc. PAC $10,000 - Not just limos and hearses, Rolls-Royce is also a major defense contractor.

  

  “Pardon me. Do you have any Grey Poupon?”

• Sierra Nevada Corporation PAC $5000 - Oh, thank God! THIS Sierra Nevada is a Nevada-based aerospace and defense contractor. The OTHER Sierra Nevada makes really good beer and was among the among the earliest and most influential craft brewers.

• Space Exploration Technologies Corp. PAC $5000 - That’s SpaceX, and Elon Musk is a fascist. Birds of a feather, baby!

• The Home Depot, Inc. PAC $10,000 - Home Depot billionaire cofounders Bernie Marcus and Ken Langone are well-known Republican mega-donors, who both supported Donald Trump.

  

  The Home Despot: More scheming. More screwing.

• Trinity Industries Employee PAC, Inc. $5000 - Trinity is a huge infrastructure conglomerate based in Dallas, TX. There are five major business groups under the main umbrella: railcar and parts manufacturing, railcar leasing and management, barge manufacturing, construction products, and energy equipment and storage. They have given overwhelmingly to Republican candidates over the last 30 years.

• Ultra Electronics USA Group, Inc. PAC $10,000 - This is another British defense contractor. Their PAC has largely given to Republicans since its inception in 2014. The group consists of five business units: Maritime, Intelligence & Communications, Precision Control Systems, Energy and Forensic Technology.

• Valero Energy Corporation PAC $5000 - No surprise here. Another Texas oil and gas giant, Valero has donated millions, almost exclusively to Republicans, since 1990. Corporations like this are precisely why we’re STILL dealing with global heating denial as the world is obviously burning.

• Wells Fargo and Company Employee PAC $5000 - Of all the repugnant players in the banking industry, none are so corrupt as Wells Fargo. They have been subject to a series of lawsuits by customers and government alike, dating to at least 2016. Their candidate spending is obviously a ploy to keep the feds off their backs.

• Zovio, Inc. PAC $5000 - Formerly Bridgepoint Education, Zovio was a for-profit education services company. Former Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) said this of the company in 2011: "In the world of for-profit higher education, spectacular business success is possible despite an equally spectacular record of student failure. Bridgepoint is a private company, but it is almost entirely dependent upon public funds ... I think this is a scam, an absolute scam." He was correct. The company has been consumed by a series of lawsuits dating back to 2008 and is no longer operational as of last September.

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TRADE GROUP PACs: A type of “connected PAC” that receives and raises money from members of a trade group that represents multiple companies in the same industry.

• American Dental Association PAC $10,000 - According to their website, “ADPAC supports congressional candidates who understand the importance of dentistry and its contribution to overall health. Regardless of party affiliation, ADPAC supports candidates who will advocate for dentists and patients.” I’ve always thought dentists got a bad rap as sadists, but given that three out of the five dentists in Congress on January 6, 2021 recommended insurrection, and their most vocal member is an open white nationalist fascist, I should have known better.

Congressman Paul Gosar, DDS (Nazi-AZ09) | Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

• American Hotel and Lodging Association PAC $5000 - a trade group representing lodging and tourism interests. Historically, they’ve given significantly more to Republicans, but their contributions have evened over the last several cycles.

• Associated Builders and Contractors PAC $10,000 - From their website: ABC “is a national construction industry trade association representing more than 22,000 members. Based on the merit shop philosophy, we help our members develop people, win work and deliver work safely, ethically and profitably for the betterment of the communities in which they work.” LOL. “Merit shop philosophy,” is an awfully high-minded pseudonym for “anti-union.” ABC PAC has donated millions since 1990, almost exclusively to Republicans.

• CULAC The PAC of Credit Union National Association $10,000 - CUNA is the trade group representing credit unions. They spend millions every cycle, on candidates from both major parties.

• National Beer Wholesalers Association PAC $8500 - NBWA have long been big political players. Traditionally, they have given more to Republicans, but today spread their money around more evenly. I can tell you - as someone who spent many years in hospitality - that beer, wine, and liquor distributors essentially act as regional monopolies in the three-tier system. They lobby hard to keep it that way. I will also admit, no matter how much they donate to Jim Banks, I would not be able to maintain a boycott.

• National Multifamily Housing Council PAC $10,000 - According to their website, “NMHC is the voice of the apartment industry and serves as the apartment industry’s primary advocate on federal legislative and regulatory matters.” In practical terms, that means they lobby for more evictions, more-concentrated ownership, and less regulation.

• Wine and Spirts Wholesalers of America, Inc. PAC $7000 - Much like their analog in the beer distribution game, WSWA has a long history of spending millions lobbying both major parties.

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LEADERSHIP PACs: You will come across “non-connected PACs” like this frequently when searching the receipts. Think of the entire ecosystem of leadership PACs as a complicated shell game with candidates moving money amongst themselves. Open Secrets describes these special organizations thusly:

Politicians collect money for their own campaigns — we all know that. But many of them also raise a separate pot of money, commonly called a leadership political action committee, to help other politicians. By making donations to members of their party, ambitious lawmakers can use their leadership PACs to gain clout among their colleagues and boost their bids for leadership posts or committee chairmanships. Politicians also use leadership PACs to lay the groundwork for their own campaigns for higher office. And some use their PACs to hire additional staff—sometimes even their family members—and to travel around the country or eat in some of Washington's finest restaurants. The limits on how a politician can spend leadership PAC money are not especially strict.

• Americans for Legislating Excellence PAC $5000 - A leadership PAC associated with Rep. Alex Mooney (R-WV).

• Big Sky Opportunity PAC $5000 - The leadership PAC of Senator Steve Daines (R-MT).

• Bulldog PAC $5000 - Congressman Jodey Arrington’s (R-TX19) leadership PAC. I’m not a betting man, but I would wager that PAC is fueled by Texas oil money.

• CMR PAC $5000 - Leadership PAC of Rep. Cathy McMorris-Rodgers (R-WA05).

• Common Values PAC $10,000 - Another leadership PAC, this one belonging to Senator John Barasso (R-WY).

• Concerned Americans for Freedom and Opportunity PAC $5000 - This is the leadership PAC of Rep. Adrian Smith (R-NE03). That ridiculous name had to have come out of the Super PAC Name Generator.

• Continuing America’s Strength and Security PAC $5000 - Another ludicrously-named leadership PAC, this one belonging to Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA). Oh, CASS PAC, I see whatcha did there.

• HeartDocPAC $5000 - The leadership PAC of Congressman Larry Bucshon (IN-08). Dr. Bucshon is a heart surgeon. The Trump era has probably been really good for business.

• Heartland Values PAC $10,000 - Senator John Thune’s (R-SD) leadership PAC.

• House Conservatives Fund $10,000 - This is Banks’ own leadership PAC. Just moving money around.

• Huck PAC $5000 - The leadership PAC of former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee. I’ve mentioned him in previous articles. This dude might be the captain of the right-wing grifter all-star team.

• Innovation PAC $5000 - This leadership PAC belongs to bow-tied weenie Congressman Patrick McHenry (R-NC10).

• Jobs, Opportunity, and New Ideas PAC $5000 - Governor Joni Ernst’s (R-IA) leadership PAC. Oh, look another acronym. How cute. 🤮

• Leadership and Accountability are National Keys PAC $5000 - LANK PAC. Yet another acronym PAC, this one belonging to Senator James Lankford (R-OK).

• Let’s Get to Work PAC $5000 - The leadership PAC of Senator Rick Scott (R-FL). In a den of corruption, Scott may be the most corrupt.

• Majority Committee PAC $10,000 - House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s leadership PAC.

• Making A Responsible Stand For Households in America PAC $10,000 - MARSHA PAC?!? C’mon Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN)! This is getting ridiculous. Should’ve expected such campiness out of this lady.

• Mr. Smith PAC $5000 - The leadership PAC of Rep. Jason Smith (R-MO08). Smith really jumps the acronym shark here. The full name is Southern Missourian In The House PAC.

• Mustang PAC $5000 - Pence the Lesser (Rep. Greg Pence, R-IN06) has his own leadership PAC. No, naming your PAC after a muscle car does not make you cool by proxy. Your whole family has as much charisma as a thimble of skim milk.

• Old North State PAC $5000 - The leadership PAC of Senator Ted Budd (R-NC).

• Project West PAC $5000 - Former Senator Cory Gardner’s (R-CO) leadership PAC.

• R Senate PAC $5000 - This leadership PAC belongs to Senator John Cornyn (R-TX)

• Reclaim America PAC $10,000 - Little Marco Rubio (R-FL) must really want Banks to sit next to him in the Senate. This is his leadership PAC.

• Responsibility & Freedom Work PAC $5000 - Aww, how cute! Senator Roger F. Wicker (R-MS) named his PAC with his initials.

• Roughrider PAC $5000 - The leadership PAC of Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-ND). I wonder if he knows there are multiple meanings for that word.

• Save America PAC $5000 - Senator James Risch’s (R-ID) leadership PAC.

• Senate Eagle PAC $5000 - Another leadership PAC, this one belonging to Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN).

• Steer PAC $5000 - The leadership PAC affiliated with Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY)

• The Eye of the Tiger PAC $5000 - House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA01) runs this leadership PAC. Survivor should sue. Again.

• Together Holding Our Majority PAC $5000 - ((Before I even look it up: It’s another too-cute-by-half acronym, isn’t it?)) Oh, Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC), you’re soooo clever!

• Working for Ohio PAC $5000 - This is the leadership PAC belonging to Senator J.D. Vance (R-OH). Vance, a venture capitalist and author - along with Missouri Senator Josh Hawley, leads a vanguard of young, pseudo-populist, neo-fascist MAGA acolytes in Congress.

INDIVIDUAL DONORS

WinRed: When researching Republican candidates, there will be a bunch of entries marked WINRED. What the hell is that? According to their own website, “WinRed is the #1 fundraising technology used by conservatives. Donors from across the country can easily connect with causes and candidates that they support.” Basically, it is a passthrough, a conduit by which individual donors can donate to candidates. Democrats use a similar platform called ActBlue. That’s great. That’s fine. I actually think this is a pretty decent setup for collecting small-dollar donations, but on my end, I have to dig through the itemized receipts. They are all available for download from the FEC, but it is time-consuming work:

With a few clicks, you can see each donation a candidate received through passthrough organizations like WINRED.

With all that said, to the best of my ability, the following is what I could find among those receipts. Here are the individuals who have donated at least $5000 to Banks’ Senate campaign since he announced in January:

• HOOSIER CONTRIBUTORS

  • Richard Byers, Jr. $12,400 - According to their website, “Automotive Color & Supply is the leading distributor of automotive and industrial coatings and related supplies throughout Indiana and adjacent markets in lower Michigan, Northwest Ohio, and Eastern Illinois.” Based in Fort Wayne, Byers inherited the business from his daddy. He has donated hundreds of thousands to Republicans since 2012.

  • Chris Hughes $6600 - President of TFE Transmission & Fluid Equipment of Fort Wayne. From their website: “Family-owned and -operated since 1964, TFE provides high-quality Fluid Power and Power Transmission products to northeast and central Indiana, northwest Ohio and southern Michigan.” Not as big a spender as some of these other folks, he has spent around $25,000 on political contributions since 2015, ALL of it on Banks.

  • Stevan DeSancic $5000 - It appears DeSancic is the owner of The Progress Group of Schererville, IN. Formally known as Progress Pump & Machine, and Progress Pump & Turbine Services, the business was founded by his father. The younger DeSancic has given many thousands to Republicans, though it looks like he’s only been politically active since 2020. That’s three heirs in a row! I don’t know any of the aforementioned and I can’t attest to their character. I don’t want to insult their capabilities or credentials, but it is a shoe that fits many of the most politically-active private wealth-hoarders in the United States: from the Koch brothers and Richard Mellon Scaife, to Donald Trump and Jared Kushner, it’s all too frequently the douchebag failsons of successful fathers gaming the system in an effort to protect, defend, and grow their unearned wealth, despite their own mediocrity.

  • Dr. Robert L. Bowen $5000 - Engineer and founder of Bowen Engineering Corporation, headquartered in Indianapolis, he is now retired. Dr. Bowen has spent hundreds of thousands, if not millions, since 1990. The bulk of those donations have gone to Republicans, though he did give some to Indiana Democrats in the early 2000’s.

  • Roger Muselman $10,000 - This guy is the chairman of DRG holdings, the parent company of Annie’s Publishing and SFG, their fulfillment arm. According to their website, “Annie's is the media division of DRG. Its products — including magazines, books, kits and supplies, online classes and TV programming — are targeted to home and family interests, including crafts, nostalgia and home décor.” The magazines they publish are Annie's Crochet Specials, Country Sampler, Crochet World, Farmhouse Style, Good Old Days, Just CrossStitch, and Quilter's World. Muselman has a long history of contributing to Republican candidates, spending hundreds of thousands. You might not think the arts & crafts industry were such hardcore Christian nationalists, but if you’ve paid attention to Hobby Lobby at all over the last decade, you know.

  • Grant Porter $6600 and his brother…

  • Scott Porter $5010 - I did not know there was a massive speedboat manufacturer located in Decatur, IN. But there is. According to the company’s website, “the guiding force behind Formula’s vision of excellence is the Victor B. Porter family. Until his passing in October of 2021, Vic Porter held the office of Chairman Emeritus of Formula Boats.” These guys are two of Porter’s sons, serving respectively as President and Executive Vice President. They’ve given Republican campaigns and causes tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of dollars and they’ve given Banks alone a boatload of money.

    

    Ha! That’s a pun about boats. I hope it doesn’t sink my efforts to be taken seriously.

  • Paul Thrift $10,000 - The President and CEO of Thomson Thrift, a Terre Haute- based real estate developer with a nationwide portfolio. He was named one of Indiana’s most influential Hoosiers by IBJ. Given that has spent hundreds of thousands, if not millions, on right-wing candidates since 2000, I BET he’s pretty damn influential.

  • Daniel Dumezich $6600 - Now retired to Marco Island, Florida, Dumezich was a Chicago-based tax attorney, who resided in Schererville, IN. From 1999 to 2002, he served in the Indiana State Assembly as the Representative from District 15. Dumezich has over 200 line items in his contribution history since 2000. Most are for Indiana candidates. The small donations are like $1000. Most are more like $5000 and I see some as high as $30,000. Easily half a million overall.

• OUT-OF-STATE DONORS

  • Rollie Neal $13,068 - Here’s a stumper. Mr. Neal is a retired Air Force veteran from Claksburg, WV. All of his political contributions have come since 2019 and are exclusively small donations to conservative groups. Think $20, $50, $100. Then, seemingly out of the blue, one massive $13,000+ lump sum to Jim Banks in March. It can’t be Banks’ overwhelming charisma. So what gives?

  • Stephenie Haney $5000 - The daughter of an influential charismatic Pentecostal megachurch preacher from Northern California. She is now an author and motivational speaker and preacher with a modest YouTube presence. An entrepreneur, she also owns In My Happy Place, “a well-established e-commerce, faith-based business with its headquarters in Austin, TX”.

  • Rebekah Woodard $6600 - Nashville, TN-based interior designer. Lovely Instagram. “Warm and casual, elegant interiors since 2003.” Donating tens of thousands of dollars to fascists since 2020.

  • Arthur Fisher $6600 - Fisher, who goes by Art and looks like he is 15, is a real estate developer from Brevard, NC. He inherited the family business. Looking at his donation history, dude has dropped hundreds of thousands of dollars on the most extreme of Republican candidates.

  • Jason Ramsey $13,200 - Mr. Ramsey keeps a very low profile, but his donation history has got to total in the millions. Like, my guy casually drops $5,000 here, $20,000 there, and $50,000 somewhere else. After much digging, it appears Ramsey - who lives in Brevard, NC like our buddy Art Fisher from above - founded Genesys Global in 2009. Genesys was a leader in industrial lighting systems and he’s got dozens of patents to his name. The firm was acquired by another North Carolina-based lighting firm, Lightserve, in 2021, for an undisclosed amount.

  • John Slavic $6600 - According to the biography on his company’s website, “John Slavic is the founder, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Slavic group of companies, which is comprised of Slavic Integrated Administration (SIA), Slavic Investment Corporation (SIC), Slavic Mutual Funds Management Corporation (SMF) and PLANRight.” The firm manages more than $9 billion in assets, and Slavic, of Boca Raton, FL has given hundreds of thousands to the MAGA-est of candidates.

  • Dan Backer $6600 - Based in Pompano Beach, FL, Backer is partner at the law firm Chalmers, Adams, Backer, and Kaufman. Directly from their website: “Mr. Backer has served as counsel to more than 100 campaigns & candidates, PACs, and political organizations, including the largest grassroots-driven SuperPACs of the past two cycles, and over $100 Million in pro-Republican political spending.  He has filed more than two dozen FEC Advisory Opinion Requests and FEC complaints on behalf of clients, numerous lawsuits against the FEC, and regularly represents political law clients before the FEC.”

  • Paul Singer $6600 - Singer is the founder, president and co-CEO of Elliott Management, an investment fund. He has been described as a “vulture capitalist” and is best known for buying foreign debt on the cheap than harassing the developing countries for payment. Singer was the #16 overall donor during the 2022 election cycle, giving over $20 million to conservative candidates and causes, and has probably spent hundreds of millions over the years.

    From the Koch brothers and Richard Mellon Scaife, to Donald Trump and Jared Kushner, it’s all too frequently the douchebag failsons of successful fathers gaming the system in an effort to protect, defend, and grow their unearned wealth, despite their own mediocrity.

Jim Banks raised over $1.2 million in the first quarter of 2023. Nearly half of it came from these 80 or so business interests and wealthy individuals OR the business interests and wealthy individuals who donate to their colleagues, who forward the money in turn. Why is this important? Major studies have demonstrated “that economic elites and organized groups representing business interests have substantial independent impacts on U.S. government policy, while mass-based interest groups and average citizens have little or no independent influence.” Banks might vote your interests, but he is far more likely to forward the agenda of these folks in the Senate. That goes for every officeholder in both major parties. For any politician, at least in the system we currently have, if you want to know how they’ll act, follow the money. I will continue to do just that. Come back next time for an all new installment of “Hoo Owns the Candidates?”