Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) was aware that Iowa state Sen. Kent Sorenson (R) was being paid for his efforts on behalf of her presidential campaign leading up to the Iowa caucuses even though Iowa Senate ethics rules prevent him from being paid for his campaign activity on her behalf, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
The information comes from an affidavit by Bachmann’s former chief of staff Andy Parrish, corroborating information from whistleblower Peter Waldron who is now being investigated by the Iowa Senate Ethics Committee.
From the Star Tribune:
Sorenson or his company, Grassroots Strategy, allegedly were paid $7,500 a month through C&M Strategies, a Colorado-based company run by Bachmann fundraiser Guy Short, who was serving as the campaign’s national political director.
“Congresswoman Bachmann knew of and approved this arrangement,” Parrish said in his affidavit. “She, like the rest of us, understood from Senator Sorenson that it did not run afoul of any Iowa Senate ethics rules. We relied on his representations in this regard.”
Sorensen, who switched allegiances from Bachmann to Ron Paul days before the 2012 Iowa caucuses, has called the payment allegations “totally baseless.”
The Star Tribune has the full affidavit.
