Special Interests Funding Team Potter
Since, in his recent campaign email, Major Tom dismissed the unions funding the opposition to his Curiously-Strong Mayor proposal as “special interests”, it’s useful — in an entirely-unsurprising sort of way — to take a look at who is funding his own effort.
We have $5,000 from a Bay City, LLC, which apparently (see comments) is just the Greg Goodman family, the largest property owner in town.
There’s another $5,000 from Melvin Mark, Jr., of “one of the region’s largest independently-owned commercial real estate companies”.
There’s $5,000 from Wells Fargo Bank.
Another $5,000 from Mark Group Partnership #5, which I assume is just another part of the Melvin Mark empire.
There’s $5,000 from Wayne Kingsley, who persumably is the same one who is the chairman of American Waterways, Inc. — and who sits on the board of the Portland Business Alliance.
And, of course, $5,000 from Robert Ball, another local property developer and a member of the Charter Review Commission.
That’s just the $5,000 contributions. You can find more if you drop the floor to the $1,000 contributions.
(For what it’s worth, these are basically the same people who funded Jim Francesconi, Major Tom’s opponent in the 2004 mayoral race.)
Point being, of course, that Major Tom can toss around dismissive “special interest” slurs at his opponents all he wants, but only if he enjoys being cut to ribbons by the glass house shattering all around him.