Softwood slush-fund for Republicans?

[da]

james_nicoll tells this story, which could scare the crap outta me. Google doesn't report any follow-up news on it, though it was supposed to be completely resolved as of September 1.

Briefly: the Canada/US Softwood Lumber dispute was wrapped up with $450 million conveyed as a trust fund to the White House for "meritous initiatives" of the President's choosing, not via the Congress. This, according to a trade lawyer in Virginia, is bound to be a slush-fund for Republican re-election campaigns. Anyone out there with contacts who could help confirm or deny this?

Ugh.

Comments

[da-lj.livejournal.com]

Thanks. That helps.

The story continues here:

http://www.thenextagenda.ca/comments/2006/10/12/152526/31/3#3

This "United States Endowment for Forestry and Communities, Inc." is a brand new foundation based in Mississippi. Headed by a Democrat, so at least it's not likely a Republican slush-fund.


Some U.S. trade lawyers, including Elliot Feldman, have said the money for "meritorious initiatives" is nothing but a political slush fund that will benefit districts where beleaguered Republicans need help in next month's mid-term elections.

"I don't take at face value that because it's a foundation, it's free of political influence," Feldman said Friday.

"You can't tell me there's no political influence in a newly created foundation."

He noted that Senate investigators issued a report this week that said five conservative non-profits may have defrauded taxpayers by selling their clout to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

[...] "I can assure you, this money will not be used to partisan advantage," Endowment for Forestry president Dick Molpus said from Jackson, Miss.

"Politics just has no place in the decisions. Look, they asked a Democrat to pull this thing together," said Molpus, who served as Mississippi's secretary of state for 12 years and was a Democratic nominee for governor.

The endowment will soon be announcing an 11-person board that will include one non-voting Canadian member.


That organization hasn't spent any money setting up a website, yet.

At least I know Habitat's good folks.