ChetChase 2010 - DGA Throws Away Perfectly Good Money

Iowans for Responsible Government, the sneaky group that tried to convince Iowa Republicans that Terry Branstad is a big 'ol liberal, was funded by the Democratic Governor's Association.

These responsible, and yet shadowy, folks spent $782,000 on TV ads and mailings, including one that featured Branstad on Mt. Rushmore with Bill Clinton, Pelosi and a known Kenyan socialist. All was revealed in an IRS filing.

Check out the filing here:

Iowans for Responsible Gov IRS Filing

The Branstad campaign has been outraged for months that the group, led by former Iowa Democratic Party chair Rob Tully, would not reveal where its funding came from.

I'm no gumshoe, but I think Tully's presence offered an important clue.

And yet, knowing does not seem to have made Team Terry feel any better:

EXPOSED: Iowans for Responsible Government confirmed as Democrat front group

…Campaign Manager Jeff Boeyink: “We have reached a new low in Iowa politics”

IRS disclosure proves that everything the Branstad 2010 campaign said about this group was right

(URBANDALE) – IRS disclosure reports filed today confirm the 527 organization called Iowans for Responsible Government is indeed a group that was formed solely as a Democrat front group and funded entirely by the Democratic Governors Association, in a blatant attempt to derail Terry Branstad's campaign for governor in the Republican primary.

The report, attached to this email, shows Iowans for Responsible Government raised $782,500 – all of which came from the Democratic Governors Association – and spent more than $767,000 of it on television advertisements and mailers that mischaracterized and smeared former Gov. Branstad's record and positions.

Branstad 2010 Campaign Manager Jeff Boeyink says this group crossed a very serious line and needs to be held accountable for its actions:

“We were right all along. We have reached a new low in Iowa politics.

“A shadowy, out-of-state-funded group attempted to infiltrate the Republican primary for governor with distortions and smear tactics. This is wrong, and despite their best efforts, Iowa voters were smarter than this and chose Terry Branstad as the Republican nominee.

“When the only contributor to this group is also Chet Culver's largest contributor, claims that his campaign had no knowledge of what this group was doing, and were not coordinating with this group, are outrageous.

“Chet Culver and his campaign owe Iowans an apology for bringing Illinois-style politics to Iowa.

“In addition, Chet Culver should come clean about his, and his campaign's, role in the creation and functioning of this deceptive front group.”

I love my politics Illinois-style, deep dish with extra cheese.

(As for a new low, I'm not sure how much different this is than the Iowa Future Fund, later the American Future Fund, a shadowy conservative group that wouldn't reveal its donors when it ran ads attacking Culver in 2008. )

Actually, its Democrats that should be outraged that the DGA would throw away $782,000 on a ham-handed, transparent and ineffective effort that also, curiously, slimes key leaders in its own party.

If the Iowa governor's seat is that important to the DGA, which clearly it is, Iowans for Responsible government should have spent the money on ads and mailings designed  to convince Iowans that Culver is competent enough to deserve another term.

Trust me, at this point, many are not convinced.

Still, will anyone care about this?

Probably not much. Hacks and wonks love this stuff, but voters who already think politicians are shady will roll their eyes. This is the sort of intrigue they've come to expect from politics.

Branstad's outrage will have about as much impact as Culver's shocked, shocked salvo a couple of weeks ago accusing Branstad and his staff of (gasp) using governor's office stationary and resources to conduct political communications back in the day.

I'm not saying it's right, I'm just saying it's not surprising.

In fact, we had a secretary of state a few years back who was accused repeatedly of shamelessly using that office to promote his well-known political aspirations at every opportunity. What was his name? Chet something.