Editorial: Enzi should keep family off campaign payroll

25 Oct 2007 // Sen. Mike Enzi should stop employing his daughter-in-law to raise money for his campaign.

Wyoming's senior U.S. senator is not breaking the law by paying a member of his family out of his campaign war chest. He's far from being the only member of Congress to do so.

But it's a bad practice. Whether it's legal is not the point. When Enzi and other politicians hire relatives to solicit campaign funds, they erode the public's faith in Congress.

The practice sidesteps a system that bars members of Congress from hiring family members to work on their congressional staffs. The Federal Election Commission allows members of Congress to pay relatives for campaign work, as long as the relatives are qualified and are paid fair market value for bona fide service.

Enzi has raised about $1.2 million since he won a second term in 2002. He's spent about $923,000 for operating expenses.

His daughter-in-law, Danielle Enzi, received $150,000 for fundraising. A company she owns, Enzi Strategies, received an additional $170,000 between 2003 and 2006 from Making Business Excel, her father-in-law's political action committee. Danielle Enzi is also the PAC's treasurer.

The total of $320,000 is probably in line with what other consultants charge. Still, it's a significant amount of money by Wyoming political standards, especially since Enzi wasn't running for office during that time.

No one disputes that Danielle Enzi is a skilled fundraiser. The senator's staff notes that she worked for other clients before marrying into Enzi's family. No doubt she could raise money for politicians other than her father-in-law.

She should.

Members of Congress are under increasing scrutiny because of recent lobbyist scandals involving influence peddling and vote buying. Even the appearance of impropriety should be enough to dissuade any senator or representative from putting relatives on the campaign payroll.

Were Enzi's campaign donors surprised this week to learn that more than one-quarter of their donations went to an Enzi family member? Were they pleased?

A watchdog group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, reported last June that at least 64 House members paid their spouses, children and other relatives out of their campaign accounts during the past six years. Shortly thereafter, the House approved a bill that prohibits paying spouses from campaign funds.

The Senate has yet to take up the bill. If it does, senators should expand it to include immediate family members.

CREW's director, Melanie Sloan, called paid family campaign connections such as Enzi's "a troubling practice." Whether it is banned or not, Enzi should do the right thing and announce he will no longer use his daughter-in-law or her company to raise funds.