ChetChase 2010 - Fun With Campaign Finance

Spent a little time this morning clicking through Terry Branstad and Chet Culver's May 20-July 19 campaign cash filings.

You can read the campaigns' big number spin-fests here and here.

No bombshells, but a few nuggets.

I swear, these campaigns would have been living on ramen noodles and Old Millwaukee without each party's respective governors associations. (I am not knocking either ramen or Old Mil, by the way.)

Branstad got $1.010 million from the Republican Governors Association in four lumps on June 10, $500,000, July 2, $10,000, July 9, $250,000 and July 14, $250,000. They really, really want to put the TB back in Terrace Hill.

Culver took in $250,000 from the Democratic Governors Association, about a third of what he raised in the period. And that doesn't count the $782,000 the DGA spent on sneaky adscalling Branstad liberal.

$50,000 - Largest individual contribution given to Branstad, from Eldon and Regina Roth of Dakota Dunes, S.D, just across the border from Sioux City. The Roth family runs Beef Products, Inc., "the world's leading manufacturer of boneless lean beef." Good to know.

$80,000 -- Culver's largest donation, from William C. Knapp, who founded Knapp Properties in West Des Moines. The firm "owns over 7,000 acres of real estate and manages 2.5 million square feet of commercial property, including office, retail and warehouse space, over 350 mutilfamily units and over 10 residential townhome/condo associations."  Also good to know.

Land Barons vs. Beef Barons. You gotta love it.

By my count, Branstad received 71 individual donations of $5,000 or more, including 12 gifts of more than $20,000.

Among his notable contributors are former Republican congressman/US senate candidate Tom Tauke, $10,000; Henry B. Tippie, whose name adorns the University of Iowa's Tippie College of Business, $20,000; and Gerald M. Kirke, whose Wild Rose Entertainment owns casinos in Emmetsburg and Clinton, $25,000. And here I thought casino revenues were tanking.

Culver hauled in $134,500 in three days, June 28-30, from labor organizations, including $50,000 from the Midwest Regional Laborers Education Committee.

Among his notable individual gifts are $25,000 from Chicago publishing executive Fred Eyechaner, $25,000 from Fred Hubbell and $15,000 from former Board of Regents member Owen Newlin of Des Moines.

The reports show that both campaigns provided much-needed economic stimulus for Iowa's local TV stations.

Culver spent $698,062 on TV ads, orchestrated by Media Strategies and Research in Denver, CO.

Branstad used Media Ad Ventures of Springfield, VA. to guide his TV campaign, which cost $502,025 during the period. MAV handled John McCain's presidential messaging.

Culver's campaign buys its office supplies at blue Costco. Branstad's team buys supplies at red Sam's Club. Can't we all just get along and go to Staples?

Oddest purchase -- The Culver campaign spent $14.83 on a headlight. It's a (night) vision thing.

Also, Bob Vander Plaats completed his second place run in the GOP primary with $1,527.46 in the bank.

Not much of a warchest for an independent run, and I only saw a couple of $100 donations that came in after the June 8 primary. So if there's a groundswell pushing him onward, it's not coming in the form of cash.