Kerri Harris’ ability to clearly define who Tom Carper is during this primary has been world class. I mean, Kent County Democrats waking up to this on the front page of the State News isn’t something anyone could have predicted.
Challenger takes aim at Carper over PAC money
DOVER — The Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate is a study in contrasts, particularly when it comes to the influence of big money on the American political system and how the candidates view corporations.
The Sept. 6 election features three-term incumbent Sen. Tom Carper and challenger Kerri Evelyn Harris, pitting the party’s liberal wing against those who prefer an approach based more on centrism.
Through the first six months of 2018, Sen. Carper has outraised his opponent about 19-to-1, collecting just over $1 million.
He reported about $1.021 million in donations, compared to the approximately $53,000 raised by Ms. Harris.
The two differ greatly in where they get their money, something Ms. Harris has emphasized in her bid for would what be a titanic upset, perhaps even surpassing tea party favorite Christine O’Donnell beating Rep. Mike Castle in the 2010 Senate Republican primary.
More than half of Sen. Carper’s 2018 contributions came from political action committees, such as those run by companies like Bank of America, Microsoft and Walmart, although the term also includes groups like the National Rural Letter Carriers’ Association, League of Conservation Voters and Laborers’ International Union of North America.
As of June 30, the latest filing deadline for the Federal Election Commission, Sen. Carper had raised just over $530,000 from PACs, with 99 percent of that coming from out of state.
I have some quibbles with Matt Bittle’s use of “liberal” and “moderate” here but overall all, first rate.
“I am concerned about the influence that these donations had, and will continue to have, on Senator Carper’s decisions regarding legislation and the use of his platform,” she said.
“It has become commonplace for career politicians to take donations from whomever; this has created a unbalanced system in which the average voter has their voice muted by the dollars leveraged by large corporations and the very wealthy. I have committed publicly to refusing corporate money to ensure that even the perception of influence is eliminated from the equation.”