Rohrabacher Says Campaign Debt by Buffa Broke the Law

Weeks after their heated Republican primary race was settled by voters, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher on Tuesday blasted challenger Peter F. Buffa for running up a $60,000 campaign debt to his campaign manager.

Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach) said he will ask the Federal Elections Commission to scrutinize Buffa’s federal campaign filings, which revealed that the unsuccessful Republican candidate owed $60,864 to campaign manager Glen Greener.

Buffa, a Costa Mesa councilman, denied that he violated any election laws and said it was not unusual for congressional candidates to be financially indebted to their campaign managers. The balance owed to Greener was not a line of credit, but a debt that he was planning to repay, Buffa said.

Buffa’s campaign spending became an issue even before the June 2 election, with Rohrabacher questioning where his opponent was getting the money to mount a strong challenge for the 45th Congressional primary. During the intense campaign, Rohrabacher called for an FBI and FEC investigation of the Buffa campaign, saying his opponent had mounted a $100,000-plus campaign while reporting less than $50,000 in contributions.

He also questioned ties between Greener and the Dougher family, the trailer park moguls whose political connections to county Supervisor Don R. Roth and other Orange County politicians are drawing scrutiny from the FBI and other agencies.

On Tuesday, Rohrabacher said his concern about Buffa’s campaign spending was justified.

“It’s not so much that I’m upset with a guy who ran a negative campaign against me,” Rohrabacher said, when asked why he was pursuing the matter. “But you cannot run a campaign and ignore the campaign laws. If you break the law, there is a price.”

Buffa acknowledged that his $60,000 debt was a significant portion of the $140,000 spent on his unsuccessful campaign. He insisted that he was planning several fund-raising events to erase the debt.

“Dana is just trying to be clever by calling it a line of credit instead of a debt,” Buffa said. “It’s silly. They don’t call this the silly season for nothing.”