Colorado AG Phil Weiser's gubernatorial campaign got donations from 68 lawyers whose firms engaged with his office
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser has accepted tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions that his opponent claims create a conflict of interest.
Weiser is running against Sen. Michael Bennet in the Democratic primary for governor.
The donations in question came from attorneys whose law firms were engaged in litigation or settlements with the attorney general's office. One of the settlements happened four months after Weiser launched his campaign for governor. His office settled a lawsuit against MC Global Holdings. The cannabis company agreed to pay a $50,000 fine for misrepresenting the health benefits of its hemp products. In the month leading up to the settlement and the month following it, 10 attorneys at the law firm representing the company donated a total of more than $6,000 to Weiser's campaign.
The donations are legal. It's the timing of them that raises questions. Attorneys at other law firms have made similar donations.
According to campaign finance reports reviewed by CBS Colorado, since Weiser announced his campaign for governor, he's received about $75,000 from 68 attorneys at 12 law firms the AG's office was engaged in litigation with or had just settled with.
CBS Colorado compared the dates attorneys made donations with the dates their law firms reached settlements with the AG's office on behalf of their clients.
66% of the donations were made within four months of the settlements. They average about $1,300 each.
It's not the first time Weiser has faced scrutiny over campaign contributions. Four years ago, he was running for re-election as AG, when the Denver Gazette ran a story about $40,000 in donations from people tied to Dish Network, even as the AG's office probed whether the company had overcharged customers. DirecTV, and Comcast were under investigation for the same alleged misconduct. All three companies settled with the AG's office. According to the terms of those settlements, DirecTV and Comcast had to refund customers or allow them to keep the same service for less money. Dish only had to agree to stop overcharging subscribers.
Weiser's campaign told the Gazette he would return the money and said, "We cannot underscore it enough: Phil Weiser refuses and returns any contributions from anyone tied to a pending investigation."
His campaign hasn't said if it plans to return the donations made to his current campaign flagged by CBS Colorado.
Weiser's spokesperson released a statement that didn't address the timing of the donations but instead attacked Bennet for out-of-state donations and a campaign finance complaint. Bennet's campaign admits it "accidentally" paid some of his gubernatorial campaign's travel expenses out of his senate campaign. He could face a fine.
