A Senate Republican leader who contends President Clinton's White House political events evaded campaign finance law filmed a promotional video in his congressional office for a GOP consulting firm.
House and Senate rules prohibit lawmakers from using congressional facilities for any non-official purpose, including campaign, fund-raising or profit-making activities.Don Nickles, the assistant majority leader, said in a statement Monday, "I don't know" whether the filming violated standards of conduct. "I don't think so. If it's a gray area or even close, I don't want to be doing it."
The Oklahoma Republican does not explicitly ask for money on the tape for Triad Management, but the consulting firm describes its role as matching donors to GOP congressional candidates who need the money.
Brook Simmons, spokesman for Nickles, said, "It was a mistake. He's not going to do it again."
Simmons said the filming "was not a solicitation for anything, so he didn't do anything illegal."
Four current House members and a former member also appeared on the tape, which was filmed before last year's election.
Republican Reps. John T. Doolittle and George Radanovich of California, J.C. Watts of Oklahoma and David McIntosh of Indiana did not film their segments on government property, their spokesmen said.
Former GOP Rep. Randy Tate of Washington, now executive director of the Christian Coalition, participated in the filming while he was still in Congress. Coalition officials said Tate was not immediately available and it could not be learned where his segment was videotaped.
On the tape, Nickles called Triad "a fantastic organization where it's pulling people together that want to make a difference. And this is a very effective organization that's going in and helping us in those races that are close, those races that are targeted."
Federal law generally prohibits soliciting campaign contributions in federal buildings, and congressional ethics rules clearly ban such activity even when the potential donor is not on government property.