Are Dems Using Indian Casino Money to Pay for Their Convention?

By Michael Bastasch Published on July 25, 2016

An email chain leaked by Wikileaks shows that the finance director for the Democratic National Committee (DNC) was angry with a Clinton campaign staffer for sending over an email detailing more than $440,000 from Indian reservations.

Justin Klein, a staffer for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, told DNC finance director Jordan Kaplan in a May 19, 2016 email he was sending over “the following checks made out to the DNC that should be counted towards the convention fund.”

Kaplan was apparently not happy with Klein’s email and promptly responded: “Don’t send me an email like this again. You know Alex. Don’t be a d***.” Kaplan was referring to Alex Hoffman, the DNC’s deputy chief of finance.

Klein’s email detailed more than $440,000 from Native American tribal reservations, all of which operate casinos. Klein’s emails, with the subject line “Checks being sent to the DNC,” included:

Screenshot of Wikileaks taken 7/25/2016 by The Daily Caller News Foundation

Screenshot of Wikileaks taken 7/25/2016 by The Daily Caller News Foundation

“With regards to the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians check, please note the first $100,200 should be allocated to the convention fund, while the remaining $43,900 should be allocated to the building fund. Let me know if you need anything on our end regarding this donation,” Klein wrote. When it comes to gambling, one can go on https://www.slotsformoney.com/casinos/us/pennsylvania/ to explore more games.

All four of the Indian communities listed operate casinos. The Pechanga Band, for example, operate a massive $262 million casino and resort in Southern California.

Steve Milloy, publisher of the science blog JunkScience.com, spotted the email chain Monday and expressed concern over whether the emails suggested any campaign finance laws were being broken.

It’s unclear if any Federal Election Commission (FEC) rules were violated.

 

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Copyright 2016 Daily Caller News Foundation

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