WASHINGTON – Republican Rep. John Doolittle of California said Friday he will no longer employ his wife as his campaign fundraiser, a practice that gave his household a 15 percent cut of all donations.
Doolittle, who has drawn scrutiny for that and his ties to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, said he will hire an outside fundraiser. He made the announcement in an op-ed piece he distributed to newspapers in his northern California district, noting his tough battle for re-election.
“After winning my election with less than 50 percent of the vote, I recognize that change is needed for me to rebuild the trust and support of my constituents,” wrote Doolittle, a conservative in his ninth term who’d easily won re-election in the past.
The change was one of 10 steps Doolittle pledged to take after a campaign clouded by questions about his wife’s fundraising and his connections to Abramoff. Doolittle also promised to spend more time in his district, hold “listening sessions” and establish district satellite offices, make himself more available to the media and work more with Democrats.
Doolittle’s wife, Julie, received a fundraising retainer from Abramoff from 2002-04 and her records were subpoenaed in 2004 in the Justice Department’s influence-peddling investigation of the now-imprisoned lobbyist. Doolittle, who denies wrongdoing, has hired an attorney to talk with federal prosecutors.
Julie Doolittle did much of her husband’s campaign fundraising, and he paid her 15 percent of every donation she brought in, instead of the industry practice of paying fundraisers a flat fee. She made more than $100,000 fundraising for his 2006 re-election campaign, federal records show.
“Because I recognize that this issue has been a concern and distraction to some of my constituents, I have retained an outside fundraiser to take over those duties,” Doolittle wrote.
Doolittle has numerous ties to Abramoff, whom he called a close friend. Doolittle accepted campaign donations from Abramoff and interceded with the Bush administration on behalf of the lobbyist’s tribal clients. He also used Abramoff’s sports box for a fundraiser, failing to initially report its value as required.
Though the district is solidly Republican, Doolittle narrowly beat Democrat Charlie Brown in November.
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