McMahon Campaign Manager Files Ethics Complaint
by Christine Stuart | Sep 10, 2012 6:30am
(14) Comments | Commenting has expired
Posted to: Congress, Election 2012
Unhappy with how the media is covering Chris Murphy’s brush with foreclosure and failure to pay his property taxes and rent, Linda McMahon brought her story to the Office of Congressional Ethics Sunday.
McMahon is the Republican running against Murphy in the U.S. Senate race. The two are locked in a “too-close-to-call” race for the seat being vacated by U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman.
The complaint filed by McMahon’s campaign manager Corry Bliss alleges that Murphy received preferential treatment from Webster Bank when they agreed to give him a 4.9 percent interest rate on a $43,000 home equity line of credit in 2008. Bliss noted that the interest rate was extended to Murphy after he defaulted on his 2007 mortgage, which was sold by Webster to Chase Home Finance. Bliss also noted that it was after he had a tax lien placed on his home in 2005 for failing to pay his property taxes.
Click here to read the complaint and here to read the exhibits.
But the complaint, which was given by the McMahon campaign to Politico earlier Sunday afternoon, may be more of a publicity stunt since the Office of Congressional Ethics can’t forward the complaint to the Office of House Ethics 60-days before an election.
But that technicality didn’t deter the McMahon campaign from filing the complaint.
“No average American would have been able to secure a loan such as Congressman Murphy’s,” Bliss alleges in the complaint. “Even borrowers in good standing would have had trouble doing so.”
“Webster Bank’s prime interest rate on home mortgage during this time was 5 percent, and the average interest rate in Connecticut for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage was 6.14 percent,” Bliss wrote.
The Murphy campaign called the complaint “desperate.”
“Since Linda McMahon can’t talk about her real record as CEO – laying off Connecticut workers, while taking millions in taxpayer-funded credits and denying health care and disability to her workers – all she’s left with is for her campaign manager to file a desperate ethics attack filled with lies,” Taylor Lavender, Murphy‘s spokeswoman, said.
The McMahon campaign allegation is that Murphy, who was a member of the House Financial Services Committee, received special treatment from the bank.
“On October 3, 2008—shortly after Webster Bank extended Congressman Murphy his new home equity credit line—Congressman Murphy voted for the Toxic Asset Relief Program, or ‘TARP.’ On November 21, 2008 Webster Bank received $400 million in TARP bailout funds.”
However, Webster Bank denied on Friday and Saturday that it gave any preferential treatment to Murphy.
“In 2008, Webster refinanced Congressman Murphy’s home equity loan into a home equity line of credit, again with no exceptions and at market rates and terms,” a bank statement reads.
“The 4.99 percent interest rate on the credit line was well above the 3.99 percent rate that the bank’s most creditworthy customers were receiving at the time,“ the Webster statement says. “The credit line was repaid when the home was sold in 2010. Currently Murphy has no outstanding loans with Webster.”
It went onto say that while Webster PAC did contribute a total $2,100 to Murphy’s 2008 and 2010 campaigns those donations had “no effect on Murphy’s banking relationship with Webster.”
And while the bank did ultimately decide to participate in the TARP program, it has repaid the Treasury’s $400 million in 2010.
“As soon as I found out I made a mistake I paid back my creditors and that’s a statement about values,” Murphy said Friday.
Murphy said charges that he got a “sweetheart deal“ on the rate from Webster was “ridiculous.”
“I applied to Webster Bank just like any of their customers would,” Murphy said.
He said McMahon went to court to avoid paying her debts.
“Let’s remember, it’s Linda McMahon who declared bankruptcy following a series of failed investments and shaky tax shelters and refused to pay taxes for five years,“ Lavender said in a statement Sunday. “McMahon is still refusing to explain how much and to who she still owes.”
Tags: Linda McMahon, Chris Murphy, foreclosure, Wesbter Bank, Taylor Lavender, Corry Bliss
(14) Comments
posted by: MGKW | September 10, 2012 10:53am
If this wasn’t so pathetic it would be funny.
Ethics from Linda McM$$??...really?
This is the same woman who defended WWE as family entertainment…who is financing her campaign with blood money earned from sex, violence and moral corruption. And she is filing ethics charges against her.
The press should be challenged to continue to delve into her WWE dealings…that is where they have not done their job.
View this youtube video…it very revealing…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msjLPBs9n74
posted by: Not that Michael Brown | September 10, 2012 11:17am
Linda McMahon has been proud to say in a TV commercial that she once went bankrupt. That means that she got a judge to tell her suppliers and creditors that she and Vince will not be paying them and will be reneging on any previous agreements she made with them. People in glass houses . . .
posted by: Concerned Citizen | September 10, 2012 11:53am
In Mrs. McMahon’s first campaign she reportedly spent $50Million. Thankfully, she was not able to “buy” that election. This time around she has repackaged herself; her highly paid marketers have remade her into a nice, warm, caring grandmother image. The fact is she is the same harsh, calculating person. Let’s ask ourselves this—why is this filthy rich woman spending millions of dollars to get a job that pays about $175K annually? Does anyone really believes that it is because she cares about the average people in CT? No! It is an investment in the continued affluence of herself and her wealthy friends; the people whose interest she will serve.
PLEASE think people. If the Republicans take over the Senate we (the poor and middle class people in CT) will all suffer the consequences for decades to come. The Republicans will roll-back all benefits under the Affordable Care Act; they will give huge tax breaks to the wealthy, and whether President Obama is there or not, he will not be able to save us because the Republicans will control the House and the Senate. Look what they have done since the Tea Party people got to Washington.
PLEASE DO NOT BE TAKEN IN by Mrs. McMahon newly minted calmness and fake warmth; she is not real!
When the first lies she told on Murphy did not hold up, she blamed the lies on the newspapers, but she continued to publish them. Murphy cannot compete against her lies because she has a bottomless trough of money to pay for any story she weaves and puts on the air. The fact that these vicious attacks are being broadcast does not make them true. Please do not allow Mrs. McMahon to BUY your vote. She is WRONG for the poor and the middle class in CT.
Do you remember Lowell Weicker? The different Republican who was going to make things better for CT? He was NOT going to raise taxes, but he gave us the State Income Tax! Did he stick around to make things better? NO!
Clearly, Mrs. McMahon will say and do anything to win. She knows that negative commercials work; she is now scraping the bottom of the barrel to get mud to throw at Mr. Murphy. I find this repulsive. Although she knows that what she is doing is unethical, she does it anyway because it serves her purpose. Of course, if Murphy was a corrupt politician he would not be scraping by to make ends meet; he would not need a loan. Mrs. McMahon does not need loans; she is a multi-millionaire. What does she know about being in need? Don’t buy her lies!
posted by: Noteworthy | September 10, 2012 12:40pm
Let’s be very clear. Webster Bank and Murphy are both lying about all of this and that’s worse than the original problem.
That Murphy was able to secure any loan from Webster Bank that was not considered a sub-prime loan is in fact, special treatment. Being sued for non-payment of rent; a property tax lien; and being sued for foreclosure - are all major negative marks on one’s credit report. Even if Murphy had a sterling report with these exceptions, the late payments would have posted on his report, as well as the foreclosure and liens would have taken his credit score to the basement. That Webster Bank says this resulted in only a 1% higher rate is downright silly. That it calls it a “substantial” increase is laughable.
For the record, Murphy too is well, lying, about how these things came to be. One does not forget your mortgage or your rent or your property taxes. when you “forget to pay” the bank calls your work and home; leaves messages; emails and writes you nasty letters. They increase the frequency and the tone worsens as more and more months of non-payments stack up. One may forget, MAY forget one month. One does not repeatedly forget and forget to look at the mail and forget to listen to the answering machine and forget to read your email or answer your office phone or cell phone. That’s a lot of forgetting; And it’s a whale of tale - a really whopper(s).
posted by: bingoballs | September 10, 2012 1:58pm
Perfect example of two totally different people, one, Chris Murphy, an average person with average problems who fell behind on payments for whatever reasons but PAID HIS BILLS!!! Linda McMahon, who overspent and over invested beyond her capabilities, cried to the courts for leniency through bankruptcy, screwed her creditors out of hundreds of thousands of dollars, regains her financial footing and becomes a multimillionaire and continues to laugh at the creditors who never got paid.
Linda does not live in the world of everyday working people so she doesn’t feel the same pain and stress that we do.
posted by: bingoballs | September 10, 2012 2:04pm
How much is Cory Bliss getting paid from the McMahon Campaign to bring these worthless allegations forward? Have you taken a good look at Linda’s eyes when she talks to you? They have fraud all over them!!
posted by: SalRomano | September 10, 2012 2:45pm
MGKW and -Not that Michael Brown” Both of you are vintage “die-hard-Democrats.” and the fact that you display “a Mightier the Thou attitude against her” is because of the fact that Linda McMahon will defeat the life-time political hack, Chris Murphy, who will be replaced by the voters on Nov. 6. Both of you appear to believe that you have never sinned, but you will sin against our country, if you vote for Barack Obama and Chris Murphy, on Election Day. Vote for America’s future by voting for Mitt Romney and Linda McMahon. If you vote of Obama-Murphy—you are selling the future of America—“down the river!” God bless America!
posted by: Not that Michael Brown | September 10, 2012 4:02pm
Linda and Vince McMahon put a lot of money on-the -nose of motorcycle stuntman. Who’d a guessed that Evel Knievel was a bad bet.
http://bit.ly/dcP6qw
posted by: Lawrence | September 10, 2012 7:31pm
Hah hah, Noteworthy!
Yes, Webster Bank CEOs are protecting Chris Murphy because their careers and the bank’s reputation hinges on this all-too-predicatble and baseless McMahon attack.
Go back now to Rush Limbaugh and Fox News, we’ve got a democracy to run…
posted by: Christopher55 | September 10, 2012 9:27pm
Go Linda!!!!!!!!!! Personally, I wouldn’t loan Murphy $1.00
posted by: Mr. Romney | September 11, 2012 3:57am
Wow. Linda is really desperate to win this election. This is nothing more than a pathetic political stunt and I think it shows her true character.
posted by: Not that Michael Brown | September 11, 2012 9:29am
Yes. And God Bless Hulk Hogan, and God Bless Evel Knievel. Thank you Linda and Vince McMahon for promoting such luminaries as these.
posted by: CT Jim | September 11, 2012 11:11am
McMahan screwed over many people in her bankruptcy and runs a business that promotes sex, violence and drug abuse and used a loan shark to help her do it. What a crook.
posted by: SalRomano | September 11, 2012 5:20pm
Not that Michael Brown: I’ll take Hulk Hogan and Evel Knievel any day over the Socialist President who is about to be defeated by a soon, real President, in the to be elected Mitt Romney—on November 6. Start thinking about America—and stop allegiance to a failure in the White House—you only support, because he is a poor excuse of a Democrat, at his very best. Vote out our deficit spending Obam-Murphy and give the Romney-Linda McMahon team a chance to balance our federal budget—and you can’t be condoning the $5.2 trilion dollor massive deficit that Obama-Murphy gave us as a losing team—in anly 44 months. Don’t let Obama-Murphy to keep mortgaging our grandchildren’s future—Yes that Michael Brown! Vote with a clear head on Election Day.