July 17, 2024 11:12 AM UTC

Dave Williams' CYA Reimbursements Only Create More Headaches

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• by: Colorado Pols

When we last discussed the ongoing controversy surrounding Colorado Republican Party chairman and twice-failed congressional candidate Dave Williams, the party appeared to have successfully put off the question forced by dissenting members of the party central committee of Williams’ continued chairmanship until the end of August–well beyond the 30-day window prescribed for these kinds of disputes, but also giving Williams that much more time to stay in control and pay himself through his consulting business.

In addition, through Williams’ close ally and former “employer” (using the term loosely) Rep. Brandi Bradley, we’ve been watching for some sort of forthcoming counterstroke from Williams that would “refudiate” once and for all the allegations that Williams misused state party funds to boost himself and other favored congressional candidates like CO-08 loser Janak Joshi. Bradley vowed that Williams would shortly put to rest the “misinformation put out by dark and evil ones trying to destroy our party.”

From the Colorado Sun’s Jesse Paul and Sandra Fish today, it looks like Dave Williams’ defense is on the books–a $60,000 donation from Williams’ congressional campaign, funded largely by loans from Williams personally, to the state party ten days before the June 25th primary:

Williams, who is facing an effort to oust him as chairman over his leadership of the party, didn’t respond to a text message seeking comment Tuesday. But Colorado GOP Treasurer Tom Bjorklund told The Colorado Sun the $60,000 was “meant to be a donation” and that there were “no strings attached.”

Bjorklund added that the money from Williams’ campaign was “not earmarked or reimbursed” for the party’s spending to help Williams.

But Bjorklund appeared to suggest the money was meant to make up for the party’s spending to help Williams by repeatedly highlighting to The Sun how “donations to the party exceed any expenses that may have been associated with (Williams’) campaign.”

“The party is out nothing,” Bjorklund said.

We’ll never know for sure, but it may be the case that Williams always intended to make a donation to the party to cover the controversial expenditures made by the party to support Williams in the CO-05 primary. Had Williams prevailed in the primary, it’s possible that all of this would have simply gone down the memory hole as a necessary investment. This donation, 10 days before Williams’ crushing loss to Jeff Crank, might therefore have been a recognition that he wasn’t going to prevail. The problem is, the party can’t acknowledge that this was a direct reimbursement, since that could cause other problems related to the use of the party’s nonprofit status to send mailers at a discounted rate. Either way, we’re talking about a highly questionable zero-interest financing arrangement, and the obvious repayment can’t be accounted for properly–even though Williams’ future depends on it being at least tacitly acknowledged by the Central Committee.

All told, it’s an unsatisfyingly shady end to a shady scheme–and an excellent argument that primary candidates should not simultaneously serve as party chairs. It’s very difficult to imagine that Williams’ successor, whether they come sooner or Williams manages to hold on until the end of his term, will continue with Williams’ unprecedented and in practice disastrous meddling in the party’s primaries.

The central committee’s response should be thanks for the money back, and you can still clock out.