RNC Reports New Debts As Feud Mounts

The RNC has more than $2M in debts as a dispute between chairman Michael Steele and Treasurer Randy Pullen spills into reports filed with the FEC, once again bringing to light fundamental disagreements between key GOP officials.

Reports filed with the FEC late Tuesday show the RNC owes hundreds of thousands of dollars to direct mail vendors, internet strategists and telemarketing firms contracted over the last year. But party officials dispute the reports, signed by Pullen, and assert the outstanding bills were paid in full.

Pullen asserted the debts go much higher than is reported to the FEC. In a memo to RNC budget committee members, first reported by the Washington Times, Pullen said the committee owes $3.3M from April and anoter $3.8M from May. Pullen filed amended reports to the FEC late Tuesday reflecting those new debts.

RNC members have been nervous about debts kept off the books by committee staffers, Hotline OnCall first reported earlier this month. But RNC aides refuted the story, maintaining that debts incurred by the committee had been paid in full, properly and on time.

"The story is so obviously inaccurate it should not be taken seriously. The RNC is committed to the openness and transparency the Obama administration promised but never delivered. Staff is available to every committee member at all hours of the day; our doors and offices are open. And we remain in compliance with FEC reporting requirements," RNC spokesperson Doug Heye told Hotline OnCall.

"Anything reported as debt has been paid in full. Today's report accurately reflects our financial position and cash on hand. Any suggestion to the contrary is patently false," Heye said. The RNC's July report showed the committee brought in $5.9M in June, while spending $7.6M. The RNC has $10.9M on hand, less than the $12.6M the committee reported last month.

Pullen did not respond to requests for comment late Tuesday evening.

The RNC has been engaged in a months-long review of budget policies in reaction to a check sent to a CA political consultant reimbursing him for a night at a risque night club. The party has brought in several well-regarded election lawyers, including ex-RNC chief counsel Tom Josefiak and ex-FEC commissioner Michael Toner, to inspect the committee's books and procedures. Heye said Toner had been brought in as part of the review.

Steele aides said the amended reports are standard procedure; indeed, committees at every level routinely file corrected reports with the FEC in order to adjust funds raised and spent in each month or quarter. But Pullen alleges the number of unpaid bills that have gone unreported is much higher than the committee knows.

The feud between the 2 most influential elected members of the RNC is the latest speed bump Steele has faced during his tenure -- and the latest thrown his way by a fellow RNC member. Steele and Pullen have fought repeated battles over the committee's budget, from the amount of money Steele can spend on contracts to the firing, last year, of long-time RNC CFO Jay Banning.

The latest flap comes just 2 weeks before RNC members are to meet in Kansas City for the committee's semi-annual gathering. While pre-election meetings are ordinarily little more than formalities, it is also the first opportunity for RNC members to register their complaints with Steele over comments made last month in which he suggested that the war in Afghanistan is a mistake.

Those comments, the latest storm Steele has weathered, were already expected to make the Aug. meeting more exciting than usual. But Pullen's allegations are sure to incite fireworks. Both Steele and Pullen have allies on the party's budget committee, where influential members of the RNC often find themselves. The proxy battle between the 2 is likely to dominate the gathering in Kansas City.