Complaint Against Minnick Stalls Will Be Resubmitted To Fec After Technical Problem Resolved

The Federal Election Commission has rejected on technical grounds the complaint Republican Sen. Larry Craig’s campaign filed a week ago, accusing Democratic challenger Walt Minnick of trying to profit from loans he has made to his campaign.

But campaign manager Mike Reynoldson said on Friday that the technical problem would be resolved and the complaint resubmitted.

The Craig campaign claimed Minnick violated federal financing rules when he imposed a 15 percent interest charge on $167,000 in loans he made to his campaign last May and June. The rules limit interest to commercially reasonable rates, and the Craig forces argued that was in the area of 10 percent - not 15.

But Minnick produced a letter from Key Bank that said 15 percent was the interest rate it was charging for similar unsecured loans last spring.

The Craig campaign has remained unconvinced, however, and will resubmit the complaint with the proper notary.

The federal commission refused to accept the first copy because campaign officials had not sworn to its contents and had their signatures notarized.

In an apparent counter to that charge, the Minnick camp accused Craig of using tax money to promote his re-election.

Spokesman Bill Broadhead contends that because a four-page letter sent from his Senate office to constituents on Craig’s nuclear waste position coincides with campaign ads promoting his record on the issue, Craig is violating at least the spirit if not the letter of the law.

Broadhead said the letter was an unsolicited mailing promoting the campaign even though it claimed to be sent in response to questions about nuclear waste from the addressee.

But while the letter does serve to reinforce the image the campaign was portraying on radio and television, it does not mention Minnick or the campaign.