DDC Should Be Politically Neutral, Not a PAC in Disguise

It was interesting to read the statemtents in today's Dayton Daily News and on Lori Turner's website suggesting that there is nothing improper about the $1.5 million contract awarded to Congressman Mike Turner's wife. The DDN piece today begins,

Leaders of local business groups have slammed the Dayton Daily News for its coverage of a no-bid contract of more than $300,000 to a company owned by U.S. Rep. Mike Turner's wife, and asked the chairmen of the Montgomery County political parties not to "politicize" the issue.

So... they hire the wife of a sitting GOP congressman and they accuse others of "politicization"? To hear the local GOP-leaning business community tell it, they didn't even know Lori Turner had a husband. Huh? A congressman? Who knew?

Likewise, Lori Turner is simply aghast that anyone would imply an improper connection between her work and her husband's.

When the Coalition hired Turner Effect and Real Art Design Group to staff the regional brand project, the Coalition unanimously approved the involvment of both firms based on the recommendations of their professional staff and the approval of brand committee co-chairs Doug Franklin, Publisher of the Dayton Daily News, and Pete Luongo, retired CEO of the Berry Company.

In Doug Franklin's own words, "One of the reasons we determined that there was not a conflict is because the DDC advocates with the federal government for the community and not for its operations."

(To see Mrs. Turner's letter, go to Turner Effect and click on "News", then "Response to recent articles in the DDN")

Franklin seems to be admitting here that Turner Effect has been employed by an organization that lobbies--"advocates"--her husband, but that it's ok, since they aren't benefitting personally from it. Really? Is he serious here? It's OK for a lobbying group to employ a congressman's wife? The publisher of the DDN thinks that's ok? And we supposedly have a liberal local paper here in Dayton?

Let me get this straight. Franklin and the DDC want the Dayton area to get more business. More defense business, especially. Which in turn will benefit business leaders like Franklin. So they lobby Congressman Turner for government business in the area. And they wonder why hiring his wife is a conflict of interest?

There's a further point that Franklin and the DDC are missing.

The DDC says they think the watchdog groups like CREW (funny how the watchdog groups aren't named in today's DDN piece) are "politicizing" the issue. If the DDC is politically neutral, why are they hiring the wife of a Republican Congressman? If the DDC and its members aren't getting preferential treatment from Turner, and so far there is no evidence I've seen that they are, then at the very least it appears that Turner is getting favorable treatment from the DDC. As a politically neutral organization, if that's what they are, they should not be funneling lucrative contracts to the spouse of a Republican Congressman. It sure gives the impression that they have a cozy relationship with the Turners, and would like to see him returned to Washington in the fall. So is the DDC a politically neutral community development organization, or is it a political action committee in disguise, whose work for community development merely masks is support for GOP candidates like Turner?

The Berry Company, incidentally, whose former CEO co-chairs the DDC, is one of Turner's top donors in this election cycle, having given $8,000 so far to Turner's uncontested primary bid. Let's not forget also that Clay Mathile was reported by the DDN to have financed much of the contract to Turner Effect, the same Clay Mathile who has a history of financing a secret slush fund used in part to fund a previous Turner primary bid for the House.

It certainly appears that there is a cozy, to say the least, relationship between the DDC and the Turners. It certainly deserves more scrutiny.

By the way: See some great digging by Jeffrey at Daytonology on Turner and the Defense industry.