Newt Gingrich’s political group quietly pulled in an impressive $8.1 million in the first half of the year, a cash haul that enabled the former Speaker of the House to finance a robust political operation that includes at least 17 employees.
A report filed Friday with the Internal Revenue Service shows that American Solutions for Winning the Future accepted at least $460,000 from oil interests in the first half of the year, after advancing offshore oil drilling as an issue during the 2008 campaign cycle, and $200,000 from the Workforce Fairness Institute, a business-backed group opposed to the Employee Free Choice Act, which Gingrich has lambasted as “a mortal threat to American freedom.”
Gingrich’s aides said Friday, the group is not a campaign-in-waiting for Gingrich, who makes many short lists of prospective 2012 GOP presidential contenders.
“Absolutely not,” said Dan Varroney, American Solutions chief operating officer. “American Solutions exists to reflect the interests and views of a tri-partisan majority of American people and to provide solutions and transform the country from the world that fails to the world that works.”
Dan Kotman, American Solutions’ spokesman, said the group is “one of the nation's largest grassroots organizations of more than 1.5 million members” and has accepted donations from more than 200,000 people and groups.
“We’re happy to be supported by other organizations and individuals who agree with our position but we would never change our positions based on financial considerations,” he said.
The operation, which includes a pollster and fundraisers, promotes Gingrich’s books, sends out direct mail, airs ads touting his causes and funds his travel across the country via charter and first-class airfare.
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