New campaign filings in the race for U.S. Senate tell a tale of two war chests.
Sen. Patrick Leahy has more than $3 million to work with in his bid for reelection. Republican challenger Scott Milne meanwhile has all of $83. Milne, however, insists that his stark financial disadvantage will be his chief political strength.
Leahy has raised nearly $4 million so far this cycle, and still had more than $3 million in the bank as of June 30, according to his latest federal filings.
It makes the $83 in Scott Milne’s campaign account look almost laughable by comparison. But Milne says his campaign’s poverty is going to become his political edge.
“I’m running against a gentleman who charges special-interest lobbyists $5,000 a piece to sit around a table with him and have lunch,” Milne says. “I think it’s one of the big things that’s wrong with Washington and I think it’s one of the things that needs to change.”
Milne says he thinks that Vermont voters are ready for change too. And he says he’ll eschew special-interest money this cycle in favor of a “grassroots campaign.”
As of June 30, Milne says his only campaign expenses were a $17 bank fee and a $5,000 public-opinion poll he paid for himself.
"I'm running against a gentleman who charges special-interest lobbyists $5,000 a piece to sit around a table with him and have lunch. I think it's one of the big things that's wrong with Washington and I think it's one of the things that needs to change." — Scott Milne
“And I think Vermont’s a special place where we can get our message out without a lot of money,” Milne says.
Leahy’s campaign declined a request for an interview for this story. A spokesperson said in a written statement that the seven-term senator has the support of more than 5,000 donors who have contributed an average of just $87.
But Seven Days political editor Paul Heintz says there’s no question that Leahy, like most every other incumbent U.S. senator, is heavily reliant on private-sector corporate interests to bankroll his political races.
“I think the question is whether after Bernie Sanders’ run for president, will Vermonters want to see something different?” Heintz says.
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, an organization that tracks the sources of political donations, chief contributors to Leahy in this cycle include the telecommunications, entertainment, legal and defense industries.
“Those line up with some of the issue areas that Sen. Leahy works on,” Heintz says.
Leahy is the ranking member on the Senate Judiciary Committee and holds a high-ranking spot on the appropriations committee.
Heintz, who has reported extensively on money in Vermont politics, says there’s absolutely no evidence of any quid pro quo tied to the political contributions Leahy has received.
But he says it’s pretty evident that money can buy access. Last October, Leahy hosted a fall foliage weekend in Vermont, where beltway lobbyists who donated as much as $10,000 each enjoyed a weekend with the senator that included an evening cruise.
“They went out on a boat in Lake Champlain. They ate meals with him. And they spent a lot of time talking with him and members of his staff,” Heintz says.
So far at least, Leahy’s campaign-finance activities haven’t dented his popularity among voters. He won nearly two-thirds of the vote during his last race, in 2010, and his favorability ratings are among the state’s best.
Also unclear is whether Milne is the right candidate to make hay out of a purity-in-politics message. As Heintz notes, Milne took in plenty of maximum contributions from wealthy donors and businesses in his 2014 run for governor, a race in which he nearly knocked off incumbent Peter Shumlin.
"Bernie Sanders has shown throughout his presidential campaign that people are really fed up with where money comes in funding elections, and I think they're motivated to support candidates who don't rely on special interests." — Paul Heinz, 'Seven Days' political editor
Heintz says the extent to which campaign-finance activities will guide voters’ decisions in the voting booth isn’t entirely clear.
“But I think that Bernie Sanders has shown throughout his presidential campaign that people are really fed up with where money comes in funding elections, and I think they’re motivated to support candidates who don’t rely on special interests,” Heintz says.
Milne will make the case this fall that he’s that candidate. The Leahy camp meanwhile says its candidate is the ablest reformer of the system, and they say Sen. Leahy is leading the fight to undo a 2010 U.S. Supreme Court decision that opened the financial floodgates in politics.
Until that reform arrives, according to a Leahy spokesperson, the unfortunate reality of money in politics means Patrick Leahy needs to steel himself financially against the forces that might otherwise send him packing from Congress.
This post was edited at 2:56 p.m. on 7/21/16 to correct Leahy's position on the Senate Judiciary Committee
