Financial reports show divide in GOP over Mississippi’s U.S. Senate race

By Steve Wilson | Mississippi Watchdog

Campaign finance reports filed with the Federal Election Commission for Mississippi’s U.S. Senate race show a stark divide between the tea party and GOP establishment.

Six-term incumbent U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran, who won the runoff by 7,667 votes, received more than $4 million in contributions, with 54 percent of that coming from individual contributors. Cochran raised more than $4 million for his campaign, and $1.6 million of that came from political action committees.

The individuals who contributed at least $2,400 apiece included some of Mississippi’s heaviest hitters in GOP circles:

• Haley Barbour — former governor and now a D.C.-based lobbyist — gave a total of $5,200 in three different transactions
• Delbert Hosemann, secretary of state, contributed $2,600

Native American tribes outside Mississippi also contributed heavily to Cochran’s campaign, including:

• The Poarch Band of Creek Indians in Alabama, which gave $2,400, $2,000 and $200 apiece in separate contributions.
• The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma gave $2,500 in two contributions
• The Pechanga Band of Mission Indians of California gave $2,600
• The Gila River Indian Community of Arizona gave $2,600
• The Seneca Nation of New York gave $1,000
• The Biloxi Tribe of Marksville, La. gave $1,000
• The AK-Chin Indian Community of Arizona gave $1,000

Individual contributions from business interests from outside Mississippi:

• Four executives from unmanned aerial vehicle producer General Atomics gave a total of $20,800
• Fifteen executives from defense contractor Northrop Grumman gave a total of $15,500
• Fourteen executives from the Washington, D.C., based lobbying firm the Podesta Group gave a total of $14,800
• Seven executives from Boeing gave a total of $6,300
• Sean Parker, founder of Napster and former president of Facebook, gave $2,600 apiece in two separate entries
• Two executives from security company Aegis gave a total of $5,000
• Three executives from the Airbus Group gave a total of $4,600
• Three executives from Huntington Ingalls gave a total of $3,500
• James C. France, former NASCAR executive and CEO of the Daytona Beach, Fla.-based International Speedway Corporation, gave $1,000

McDaniel, who might challenge the race’s result, received more than 89 percent of his contributions from individuals and raised more than $1.5 million. The Club for Growth and Sarah Pac, former Alaska governor and vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s political action committee, contributed $10,000 and $5,000, respectively.

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