Since 2004, one Norman Hsu has been carving out a
prominent place of honor among Democratic fundraisers. He has funneled
hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions into party coffers,
much of it earmarked for presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of
New York.
In addition to making his own contributions, Hsu has honed
the practice of assembling packets of checks from contributors who bear little
resemblance to the usual Democratic deep pockets: A self-described apparel
executive with a variety of business interests, Hsu has focused on delivering
hefty contributions from citizens who live modest lives and are neophytes in
the world of campaign giving.
On Tuesday, E. Lawrence Barcella Jr. -- a
Washington lawyer who represents the Democratic fundraiser -- confirmed that
Hsu was the same man who was involved in the California case. Barcella said
his client did not remember pleading to a criminal charge and facing the
prospect of jail time. Hsu remembers the episode as part of a settlement with
creditors when he also went through bankruptcy, Barcella said.
The bulk
of the campaign dollars raised by major parties comes from the same sources:
business groups, labor unions and other well-heeled interests with a long-term
need to win friends in the political arena.
But the appetite for cash
has grown so great that politicians are constantly pressured to find new
sources of contributions. Hsu's case illustrates the sometimes-bizarre results
of that tendency to push the envelope, often in ways the candidates know
nothing about.
As a Democratic rainmaker, Hsu -- who graduated from UC
Berkeley and the Wharton School of Business -- is credited with donating
nearly $500,000 to national and local party candidates and their political
committees in the last three years. He earned a place in the Clinton
campaign's "HillRaiser" group by pledging to raise more than $100,000 for her
presidential bid.
Records show that Hsu helped raise an additional
$500,000 from other sources for Clinton and other Democrats.
"Norman
Hsu is a longtime and generous supporter of the Democratic Party and its
candidates, including Sen. Clinton," Howard Wolfson, a spokesman for the
campaign, said Tuesday.
"During Mr. Hsu's many years of active
participation in the political process, there has been no question about his
integrity or his commitment to playing by the rules, and we have absolutely no
reason to call his contributions into question or to return
them."
Wolfson did not immediately respond Tuesday night to questions
about Hsu's legal problems.
Though he is a fugitive, Hsu has hardly
kept a low profile. The website camerarts.com, which sells photographs taken
at political events, features shots of Hsu at several fundraisers he hosted at
Manhattan's elegant St. Regis hotel -- including a June 2005 luncheon for Rep.
Doris Matsui (D-Sacramento).
Hsu lives in New York City. Efforts to
contact him were unsuccessful. Barcella said Hsu chose to respond through his
lawyer.
Records show that Hsu has emerged as one of the Democrats' most
successful "bundlers," rounding up groups of contributors and packaging their
checks together before delivering the funds to campaign officials. Individuals
can give a total of $4,600 to a single candidate during an election cycle,
$2,300 for the primaries and $2,300 for the general election.
One
example of the kind of first-time donors Hsu has worked with is the Paw family
of Daly City, Calif., which is headed by William Paw, a mail carrier, and his
wife, Alice, who is listed as a homemaker.
The Paws -- seven adults,
most of whom live together in a small house near San Francisco International
Airport -- apparently had never donated to national candidates until 2004.
Over a three-year period, they gave $213,000, including $55,000 to Clinton and
$14,000 to candidates for state-level offices in New York.
The family
includes a son, Winkle Paw, who Barcella said was in business with Hsu.
Another son works for a Bay Area school board, while one daughter works for a
hospital and another for a computer company.
"They have the financial
wherewithal to make their own donations," Barcella said. "It didn't come from
Norman."
