Say Anything Blog

Update: In the post below I noted that the 2006 disclosure form listed Senator Conrad’s wife as only making $1,000.  I misread the disclosure form.  The form only requires that Conrad’s spouse report any income from a source over $1,000.  She reported over $1,000 from her activities as a lobbyist, but didn’t give an exact amount above that.

Earlier today I posted about the $1.07 million vacation home North Dakota Senator Kent Conrad bought with a cushy “VIP” loan from disgraced Countrywide CEO Angelo Mozilo.  I also posted about the fact that, despite having purchased this home in 2004, it didn’t show up on Conrad’s 2006 legally-required Senate disclosure forms.

The 2007 forms from Conrad, which were required to be filed by the Senators today, does have this vacation home listed (data obtained via email):

2007 financial disclosures for North Dakota’s two senators:

Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D.

Earned income: Conrad made $162,200 in 2007 as a U.S. senator.

Honoraria, all donated to charity: None.

Major assets: North Dakota Public Employees Retirement System, $50,000-$100,000; Checking and savings accounts, $16,000-$55,000; Money market account, $50,000-$100,000; Mutual funds, stocks and other investments, $165,001-670,000.

Major sources of unearned income: Two rental properties. Apartment building in Bismarck, N.D., valued between $250,000-$500,000 listed rental income between $15,000-$50,000. Rental unit in Conrad’s personal residence in Washington, D.C., valued between $500,000-$1,000,000, listed rental income between $5,000-$15,000.

Major liabilities: Mortgage, $50,001-$100,000, on Bismarck, N.D., apartment house.

Gifts: None.

Narrative: Conrad also has a house in Bethany Beach, Del. that is owned by his wife, Lucy Calautti. Calautti is a lobbyist for Major League Baseball.

Conrad is claiming that the Bethany Beach vacation home belongs to his wife, Lucy Calautti.  But here’s the problem: In the 2006 disclosure form Lucy Calautti is listed as only having $1,000 in income.  How in the world does a woman with only $1,000/year in income afford a $1,000,000 vacation home?  For that matter, how does Kent Conrad afford to keep an apartment building in North Dakota, a townhouse in Washington DC and a million-dollar vacation home on a mere $162,000/year salary?

Also, why did Conrad choose to disclose his vacation home this year but not any of the other years from 2004 (when he purchased the vacation home) onward?  And why is the loan on the vacation home never listed as a liability on any of these disclosure forms?  Is a $1 million mortgage not a liability?

There are a lot of unanswered questions here about Conrad’s personal income, and each time Conrad offers up an explanation (such as saying the vacation home belongs to his wife, or that he didn’t disclose it because he isn’t required to) more questions arise.

And there still remains the question of Conrad taking a “VIP” loan with special considerations granted because he’s a US Senator.

Will North Dakota’s media get to the bottom of this?  Or will they simply re-print Conrad’s spin and then bury the story hoping that it fades from the public’s consciousness before the next time Conrad has to run for re-election?