Rodriguez campaign under fire after campaign finance report discrepancies
MADISON, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez’s campaign for governor is facing criticism after she fired her campaign manager over discrepancies in her campaign finance report.
Rodriguez said she is hurt, angry and disappointed in her now-former campaign manager. The discrepancies amount to about $100,000 in donations that her campaign does not actually have.
Rodriguez walked in to cheers from supporters before addressing the firing of her campaign manager. She said she first learned about discrepancies in her campaign finances when ads reportedly part of a $1 million campaign buy did not air as expected.
“Right now, this is what I know: there were double counting of donations and there were expenses that were not put in that finance report. That’s what I know today. We are going to continue to work to be as transparent as possible,” Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, a Democratic candidate for governor, said.
Rodriguez said her campaign currently has about $200,000 in the bank. She had previously announced a $1 million ad buy, but due to the discrepancies in her campaign finance reporting, the ads never ran. She said her team is working with the Wisconsin Ethics Commission to remedy the reports and make sure its reporting is accurate. She didn’t share an exact number of the donations that were duplicated or go into detail about why these mistakes happened. She said it’s too early to know, despite the campaign finance report with the discrepancies being filed back in January.
“People don’t normally stand in front of all these cameras and be as honest and transparent as I have been with what I know was an error in those financial transactions and those financial reports. That’s what I would tell Wisconsinites,” Rodriguez said.
Political experts said transparency is what Rodriguez will need to continue to keep her momentum going.
“It’s going to hurt in the short-term to get everything out there, to reveal all the bad information, but it’s better to do that and hurt right now than have the drip, drip, drip of an extended scandal,” Anthony Chergosky, an associate professor of political science at UW-La Crosse, said.
Several of Rodriguez’s opponents have released statements responding to the announcement. You can see those below.
“I’m staying focused on our campaign, but we’ve shown we’re a campaign focused on transparency and accountability. Especially with the next finance reports coming out this week, I think it’s vital that everyone running for this position is creating a standard of trust, honesty and accountability.” – Francesca Hong
"Considering Sara Rodriguez already said she would write Wisconsin’s budget 'behind a curtain,' she has some serious questions to answer. When did she first learn about these inaccuracies? What were they? And why was there so little oversight of her campaign finances? If this is how she manages her own campaign, she shouldn’t be trusted with Wisconsin’s budget or taxpayer dollars.” – Tom Tiffany
“It’s never been more clear that Sara Rodriguez isn’t ready to serve Wisconsin as our top executive. “Sara Rodriguez only noticed hundreds of thousands of dollars missing when she didn’t see her face on TV. This level of gross mismanagement of finances and staff is unheard of in professional politics. Sara Rodriguez didn't come forward out of transparency. Like her state budget pledge, she prefers to manage her campaign's finances behind closed doors. She only came forward because her mismanagement and dishonesty was scheduled to become public at 11:59pm on Wednesday. She has repeatedly lied about raising millions to try to display false strength despite consistently polling in third—even in her own internals. A campaign this poorly mismanaged stands no chance against Tom Tiffany this fall.” – Mandela Barnes
“Sara Rodriguez failed to answer many serious and mounting questions about her campaign's mismanagement and, more importantly, failed to take responsibility for what unfolded on her campaign. Wisconsinites deserve competence and transparency, as well as a strong Democrat who can win in November. Otherwise, we will lose to Tom Tiffany, risk Democratic majorities in the legislature and give up any shot at lowering costs, expanding health care and standing up to Trump. If Sara Rodriguez can’t answer basic questions about her campaign, what answers does she have for people who are hurting in Wisconsin?” -Joel Brennan