JEFFERSON CITY, Mo — Attorney general candidate Josh Hawley’s campaign encountered more legal issues last week when an ethics complaint was filed with the Missouri Ethics Commission by Stoddard County Prosecuting Attorney Russell D. Oliver.
The complaint centers on Hawley’s creation of two nonprofits prior to officially forming a campaign committee. The complaint alleges that Hawley used these nonprofits to campaign while still employed as a law professor at the University of Missouri, a position he would have had to leave as soon as he was officially campaigning.
“We don’t have a lot of campaign finance laws in Missouri. We don’t have limits on contributions. The one thing our system absolutely depends on is full disclosure of where your money’s coming from that you are spending on a campaign,” Oliver said. “It’s a clear, intentional skirting of campaign finance laws.”
One of the two nonprofits of interest is Missouri Forward, founded by Hawley in Nov. 2013. It’s listed as a 501(c)(3), which means that donations can remain anonymous and tax deductible. The complaint says it could only find evidence that Missouri Forward did work for the Missouri Liberty Project, Hawley’s other nonprofit.
The Missouri Liberty Project, also known as Missouri Forward Alliance, was founded by Hawley in Jan. 2014 and is listed as a 501(c)(4), meaning donations to that group are not tax deductible.
The complaint says that “Hawley used the ‘nonprofit’ platform to launch a self-promotional speaking tour at dozens of Republican partisan events all over the state of Missouri.”
It also said he essentially used the Missouri Liberty Project as an unofficial campaign committee.
According to the complaint, Hawley turned control of both nonprofits over to his wife and his campaign manager, Daniel Hartman, after becoming an official candidate. These activities, the complaint says, prove that the nonprofits were tools of an unofficial Hawley campaign.
The complaint includes pages of evidence showing the nonprofits listed the Hawleys’ home as its address, even after control of the organizations were shifted to others. However, when the Hawleys filed amicus briefs with the Supreme Court for the Hobby Lobby case under these nonprofits, they listed their Univeristy of Missouri law school offices as their address.
“The nonprofits were nothing more than shadow unfiled campaign committees created and maintained by the Hawley campaign,” the complaint continues, saying Hawley’s actions after officially becoming a candidate provide ample evidence.
The ethics complaint also addresses Hawley’s other current legal issue, a lawsuit filed last month saying Hawley has skirted Missouri Sunshine Law to avoid charges that he campaigned while employed as a full-time law professor at the University of Missouri. The new complaint says the lawsuit verifies allegations that Hawley campaigned while on the university’s payroll and that he used university property for campaign purposes.
Read the complaint here:
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