March 1, 2007
For the Trohas, political giving is a family affair
By Daniel Byce
The family that pays-to-play together stays together.
Or so it seems with the Troha clan of Kenosha.
Charged Thursday with illegally funneling campaign cash to Gov. Jim Doyle and others through relatives, multimillionaire Dennis Troha has set a pattern - along with his extended family - of dropping numerous hefty contributions all at once.
On Oct. 6, for instance, eight members of Troha's family gave a total of $50,000 to the state Democratic Party's federal account. The individual donations ranged from $5,000 to $10,000.
Democratic Party officials had no comment late Thursday. But earlier this week, spokeswoman Jessica Erickson sent an e-mail statement defending the donations.
"I . . . want to emphasize that there is nothing unusual about different family members supporting the Democratic Party or a campaign, or for contributions to come in at the same time," Erickson wrote.
Democratic Party Chairman Joe Wineke repeated that mantra early Thursday, saying he knew nothing of these Troha donations until recently. But he added that he was sure that lots of families make a habit of donating large sums to the party, all on the same date.
So would he please name names?
"I don't do our financial stuff," Wineke said. He added, "I don't even know Dennis Troha."
Everybody does now.
Actually, there is one family that earlier bundled its donations and dropped them off at the party one day several years ago. Yes, seven members of the Troha dynasty did the same thing back on Oct. 20, 2002, chipping in a total of $35,000 to the Democratic Party's federal coffers, campaign records show.
Thursday's indictment cites five of these seven contributions as being possibly illegal.
Troha is accused of using a business venture called Johnson Houston Partners to provide money to family members for political donations so he could circumvent campaign contribution limits. His attorney, Franklyn Gimbel, defended Troha's actions.
"I just don't think what he did was illegal," Gimbel said.
The Troha family practice of jointly giving large sums doesn't end with the state Democratic Party. Troha's family and business associates also gave:
• Seven donations of $2,100 each - the maximum in a congressional primary - to U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan, a Janesville Republican, on Nov. 30, 2005. Earlier that year, eight members of the Troha clan gave $2,000 each to Ryan over a two-day period.
Overall, Ryan, who has gone to bat for the Kenosha casino proposal with federal regulators, has received more than $50,000 from the family since 2001.
"The recent indictments surrounding the Troha family contributions to another campaign are very troubling," Ryan said in a statement. "I am anxious to learn the results of this investigation. Once all of the facts become available, if any contribution to the Ryan for Congress campaign is found to be legally in question, I will take appropriate and corrective action."
• Seven donations of $1,000 each to the Assembly Democratic Campaign Committee on March 21, 2005. Since January 2003, Troha's family and business associates have pumped $35,000 into this fund.
Assembly Minority Leader Jim Kreuser, a Kenosha Democrat who oversees the fund, was not available for comment.
• Twelve donations totaling $17,500 on Aug. 23 to U.S. Rep. James Oberstar, a Minnesota Democrat who was the ranking minority member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Troha, who put his net worth at $33.7 million in 2005, made most of his money off his trucking business, which he sold in July.
The congressman's staff referred questions to a campaign aide, who could not be reached for comment.
• Seven donations for a total of $14,000 on May 23, 2005, to U.S. Rep. Don Young, an Alaska Republican who was then the vice chairman of the House Resources Committee, which was considering a bill that would have restricted off-reservation casinos. Young also was the House Transportation chairman.
Alana Petersen, the political director for Young's campaign, did not return calls Thursday.
Of course, this money pales by comparison with the dollars given to Doyle, who has the final say over the Kenosha casino. In all, Troha's family has given him $200,000 since January 2002, including $51,500 on June 30, 2005.
Doyle campaign staffer Anson Kaye said Thursday that the second-term Democrat would return campaign contributions from Troha if the businessman is convicted.
So we're not talking about the full $200,000 - just the contributions that would be part of any plea deal or conviction?
"No question about it," Kaye agreed.
Daniel Bice can be contacted by phone at (414) 223-5468 or e-mail at dbice@journalsentinel.com.
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