Once a hero, Oregon congressional candidate funds questioned

By Brian Slodyskio | Associated Press

WASHINGTON — Alek Skarlatos, a leader soldier-turned-Republican legislature candidate, started a nonprofit soon aft his 2020 decision successful occidental Oregon, pledging to advocator for veterans “left precocious and dry” by the state “they enactment their lives connected the enactment for.”

The group, which Skarlatos seeded with $93,000 successful leftover run funds, has done small since past to beforehand that cause.

What it has nurtured, though, are Skarlatos’ governmental ambitions, providing $65,000, records show, to his 2022 bid for a rematch with longtime Democratic Rep. Peter DeFazio successful a territory stretching from the assemblage municipality of Corvallis to the Oregon shore. It’s a spot that Republicans are targeting successful their quest to triumph backmost the House.

Campaign concern laws prohibit candidates from self-dealing and from accepting illicit wealth from often opaque and little regulated satellite of governmental nonprofits. That includes a prohibition connected candidates donating run currency to nonprofit groups they control, arsenic good arsenic a broader prohibition connected accepting contributions from specified groups, ineligible experts say.

But years of lax run concern instrumentality enforcement has fostered an situation wherever galore candidates are consenting to situation the long-established boundaries of what’s legal.

“You can’t bash that,” said Adav Noti, a erstwhile lawyer for the Federal Election Commission who present works for the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center successful Washington. “There’s superior corruption potential. The instrumentality contemplates that.”

Skarlatos’ run did not marque him disposable for an interview, did not code the activities of the nonprofit and would not accidental if Skarlatos presently holds a relation with the group. Campaign manager Ross Purgason said the transactions were “completely legal.”

“Despite an effort to smear Alek Skarlatos, who served successful Afghanistan, helium was ne'er paid a dollar,” said Purgason.

In 2015, Skarlotos, a subordinate of the Oregon National Guard, gained a measurement of fame erstwhile helium helped disrupt an onslaught connected a bid bound for Paris by a heavy equipped antheral who was a follower of the Islamic State. Hailed arsenic a hero, helium appeared connected “Dancing with the Stars,” visited the White House and was granted dual French citizenship. It besides led to a relation starring arsenic himself successful the Clint Eastwood movie “15:17 to Paris.”

Once helium turned to politics, his biography served arsenic a cornerstone of his run against DeFazio, the president of the House proscription committee, who went connected to bushed Skarlatos by 5 percent points successful November 2020.

He started the nonprofit the period aft his loss, naming it 15:17 Trust — a notation to the bid attack. It was registered successful Virginia, with his run treasurer besides serving arsenic the group’s treasurer, records show.

“Our work men and women are peculiar radical — heroes — who person and volition enactment their lives connected the enactment for ours, and we beryllium it to them to marque definite they’re taken attraction of,” Skarlatos said successful a March 2021 fundraising email. “This is wherefore I americium arrogant to denote that I americium officially launching the 15:17 Trust, a caller 501(c) 4 non-profit enactment dedicated to advocating connected behalf of and supporting our veterans.”

But the radical has had a decidedly debased profile. It has an progressive online fundraising page, but its website is offline. A Facebook leafage is “liked” by lone 9 people. Its Twitter relationship has zero followers and lone 1 tweet from April, soliciting input for a survey connected veterans’ concerns. A hunt of media databases amusement nary lawsuit of the radical being mentioned successful quality stories.

Federal candidates and officeholders are allowed to donate run funds to nonprofit groups. But they are prohibited from donating to nonprofits that they control. Skarlatos’ run relationship gave $93,000 successful February to his 15:17 Fund.

The instrumentality is intended to forestall candidates from sidestepping a prohibition connected the idiosyncratic usage of run funds by routing wealth to a abstracted radical that they could past usage to cod a wage oregon payments.

Separately, national campaigns look choky limits connected however overmuch and who tin springiness to them. That includes a prohibition connected accepting donations from corporations, including nonprofits, which tin judge unlimited sums from anonymous donors.

Though the transportation of $65,000 from Skarlatos’ nonprofit to his run was listed arsenic a “refund” successful filings, that apt doesn’t quadrate with the law, said Noti, the erstwhile FEC attorney.

“You can’t, months later, nonstop a antithetic magnitude from a nonprofit institution to a run and accidental it was a refund for a larger magnitude that was transferred overmuch earlier,” helium said.

Skarlatos has collected payments from his run successful the past.

During the 2020 campaign, Skarlatos paid himself much than $43,000 successful mileage reimbursements, rent and expenses vaguely listed arsenic “contractor run staff,” records show.

In the 2 months aft launching his 2022 GOP superior bid — the lone play of clip reflected yet successful quarterly filings submitted truthful acold — he’s collected different $2,521 successful mileage reimbursements.

Skarlatos’ required legislature fiscal disclosures amusement a diminishing watercourse of idiosyncratic income successful caller years.

He reported making $40,000 from speaking fees, endorsements and residuals from his movie enactment successful 2018. But his astir caller filing, which was submitted successful May 2020, shows that dropped to $20,000, which helium bolstered by collecting determination betwixt $5,000 and $15,000 successful rent from properties helium owns. (Congressional disclosures item dollar values successful ranges, not circumstantial figures.)

It’s unclear if Skarlatos collected a wage from his nonprofit, though his run says helium didn’t. That’s due to the fact that the group, which is not listed successful an IRS database of tax-exempt groups, has not yet released mandatory fiscal data, which each nonprofits are required to marque public. The disclosure won’t person to beryllium filed with the IRS until adjacent year.