Tester gives questionable campaign donations to US Treasury

BILLINGS – Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Tester has turned over to the U.S. Treasury nearly $52,000 in questionable campaign donations from partners in a Boston law firm.

The Billings Gazette reported Tester released the money on Monday, a day after The Boston Globe and the Center for Responsive Politics reported the Thornton Law firm was apparently illegally compensating its employees for their campaign donations.

Tester spokeswoman Marnee Banks said the Thornton donations were made to Tester’s campaign from 2010-12 and he hadn’t accepted any money from the law firm since then.

The law firm believed its donations were legal, but several politicians returned donations or wrote checks to the U.S. Treasury on Monday, including Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.