The cash value of charity in California politics

In addition to beating out faith and hope for the top spot in Christian virtues (1 Corinthians 13:13), charity is also a great way to influence politicians. Every politician worth his campaign war chest knows how to make himself look good by getting the deep-pocketed corporations and other groups to fund his pet charities. And while there are limits on campaign contributions, there are no limits on “behested” payments to charities (contributions made at the behest of politicians). Now you can keep track of which corporations are writing those virtuous checks that put smiles on the faces of California lawmakers.

For the first time, the California Fair Political Practices Commission has put online reports of behested charitable contributions. And in today’s Stockton Record, Hank Shaw shows the kind of fun facts waiting to be found in those reports.

Among the more interesting local cases is that of state Sen. Jeff Denham, R-Merced, who solicited money to create the Jeff Denham Future Leaders Scholarship at Merced College.

Wal-Mart is the primary sponsor of the Denham scholarship, having given $32,500 toward it since 2005. Denham’s wife, Sonia, holds the Wal-Mart account for the organic vegetable wholesaler Earthbound Farm.

Wal-Mart also has seven stores in Denham’s 12th District, and the company has supported his campaigns; it contributed $3,000 to his re-election effort in August 2005, a week after it donated its first $10,000 to the Denham scholarship fund.

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But the scholarship was set up during a time of controversy for Wal-Mart in the region. The city of Turlock had recently defeated a Wal-Mart-initiated lawsuit over a local ordinance limiting big-box stores; Denham represents Turlock. The city later approached Denham to sponsor legislation that would help it recover the $300,000 it lost fighting the company, but Denham declined. Bohlke [Denham's spokesperson] told The Modesto Bee at the time that such legislation would unleash a flood of lawsuits.

Of course, I’m sure Wal-Mart would assure us that it gave Denham’s charity all that money strictly out of the goodness of its corporate heart. Just like it spent all that money to overturn Long Beach’s restriction on big-box retailers solely out of concern for the welfare of Long Beach and its citizens.

Tags: 1 Corinthians 13:13, behested payments, California Fair Political Practices Commission, charity, Jeff Denham, Stockton Record, Wal-Mart