Friedman admits mistake

Friedman admits mistake in calling for Perry and Strayhorn to return dirty money

Independent gubernatorial candidate Kinky Friedman apologized late last week after he demanded that two of his opponents return more than $75,000 they received in 2000 and 2001 from the Enron Corp. Political Action Committee and from former Enron chief Kenneth Lay.
Lay was found guilty last week for his role in Enron’s bankruptcy in 2001.
According to Friedman, Gov. Rick Perry received $10,000 in March 2000 and $25,000 in June 2001 from Lay.
Comptroller Carole Strayhorn received $25,000 in June 2001 from Lay.
The Enron Corp. PAC gave an additional $5,000 to Perry in 2001 and $10,750 to Strayhorn in 2000 and 2001.
Lay also contributed $90,000 to the Harris County Republican Party between 2000 and 2001 and $10,000 to the Republican Party of Texas in 2000.
The Republican Party of Texas gave $143,000 to Rick Perry in 2002.
Freidman called on both Strayhorn and Perry to return the money, before releasing an updated press release noting that both candidates had returned the campaign contributions.
According to the Strayhorn campaign, Strayhorn gave the Enron Ex-Employees Foundation $34,500 and later gave the Greater Houston Community Foundation $51,750 in February 2002.
Perry donated $85,000 to the Texas Tomorrow Fund in May 2002.
“We salute both candidates for donating these contributions and regret the oversight,” Laura Stromberg, a Friedman spokesman said. “It remains unclear whether Perry returned all or only a portion of the contributions he received from Enron-related sources. The Friedman campaign encourages a swift donation of any remaining Enron-related dollars to organizations benefiting those affected.”
Democratic candidate Chris Bell used the incident for his campaign as well.
“If Texans want a governor who wouldn’t have taken Enron money in the first place and knows enough to check his facts before making a political attack, there is only one choice, and his name is Chris Bell,” Jason Stanford, a spokesman for Democratic candidate Chris Bell told the Waxahachie Daily Light Monday.