Campaign Spending Report

October 18, 2006: Forms filed by the Hoffa campaign with the Election Supervisor show that the Hoffa Campaign and candidates have spent some $3 million, with approximately 90 percent of that coming from Teamster officials, many of them on Hoffa’s payroll.

Forms filed by the Leedham campaign indicate that about $300,000 was raised and spent, most of it from working Teamsters. Forms filed by TDU, an independent movement of Teamsters backing Leedham, indicate another $100,000 was used to support Leedham.

Leedham has been outspent by more than seven-to-one in the campaign, with the bulk of Hoffa’s big money coming from those on the payroll. As shown on this page, some of it was even money laundered from members’ dues money.

However, Hoffa has not gotten the bang for his buck that Leedham has. Much of Hoffa’s money is wasted on overpriced consultants, staff, fancy events, and relatives. For example, Hoffa’s son David raked in nearly $200,000 for legal work on election protests, but he doesn’t win any!

The Leedham campaign and TDU have paid less than a tenth of that, but win important protests, and have won new Rules (including the rule requiring a debate).

Hoffa has paid over $74,000 to a corporate consultant whose big clients are the Republican Party and nonunion employers, just to run a little website that lies about TDU. Hoffa’s PR spinmeister Richard Leebove has bagged $80,000. And the list goes on. These guys spend their campaign money the same way they often spend members’ dues money.