Foley, Fedele, and Campaign Financing In Court

A state court judge says she’ll rule by tomorrow at 5 p.m. in the case of whether Lt. Governor Michael Fedele should be awarded more than $2 million in state campaign financing.  WNPR’s Jeff Cohen reports.

 

The lawsuit was brought by Republican gubernatorial nominee Tom Foley against Fedele, who is competing in the gubernatorial primary.  Fedele and his running mate, Mark Boughton, joined forces and campaign funds earlier this summer to raise enough money to qualify for public campaign financing. But Foley says that runs afoul of state law.

 

In a hearing before state court Judge Julia Aurigemma, Foley attorney Daniel Krisch argued that the two candidates should not be allowed to qualify for public funding.  Among other things, Krisch said that allowing that to happen would chill Foley’s right to free speech and would cause immediate, irreparable harm. 

 

“And that harm will happen as soon we walk out the door, because in the nature of the primary campaign season, once that money is received by the Fedele campaign, no doubt they will start to spend it.”

 

But Fedele’s lawyer, Bart Halloran, said that not giving the lieutenant governor the money he has worked to qualify for would essentially shut his campaign down.

 

“The people of the state of Connecticut if this happens are the ones who are going to be the losers because Fedele will effectively be silenced.  Foley is certainly is not silenced.  He is advertising, he is speaking everywhere, he’s mailing things out, he couldn’t be more active in the expenditure of funds in his campaign.  Fedele on the other hand is waiting for these funds to launch his campaign.”

 

Aurigemma said she would issue a ruling by 5 p.m.Tuesday after getting a pledge from Fedele's attorney that the candidate wouldn't dip into the state money until she rules. 

 

For WNPR, I’m Jeff Cohen.