by Ed Naile
Just as I departed for a business trip August 18 it was announced that the never-photographed-that-we-know-of Jesse Burchfield has cut a sweetheart deal with the feds over the aborted US Senate campaign of former State Senator Burt Cohen.
The accusations that the checks from the Cohen campaign were forged are not addressed in the resulting indictment for failing to properly report campaign finances, from what I can see. Missing money seems to no longer to be a problem now that a high-powered DC law firm has straightened out the Cohen finances.
What, no New Hampshire firm could manage a simple readjustment of the $837,856.00 in receipts and $836,799.00 in disbursements? Or is the $241,007.00 in debts owed the problem?
Here is a question I have. If the Republican Party spent some $722,000 in legal fees defending a Mr. Tobin who was indicted in the infamous phone-jamming incident for which Chuck McGee currently sits in Federal prison, how much did Burt Cohen spend to have his books straightened out by DC lawyers?
The gears of justice ground quickly for Chuck McGee in the 13 months since Burt Cohen discovered his campaign manager from nowhere – who assumed sole authority over Cohen For NH campaign finances – had pranced off into the wilderness.
NH’s news media has done a fine job of investigating this scandal from their bunker in Room 116 haven’t they? Should Burt declare them as contributers in his next out-of-state FEC filing? I would hope so.
And this Geoffrey Nathan celebrity attorney Burchfield hired. Who paid him? Jesse is reportedly in Sacramento “looking for work” according to his lawyer. Is Jesse independently wealthy?
If you’re looking for clues as to what happened to old Burt’s campaign forget his statements to the press. So far he tried to lay some responsibility on the bank. That blew up in his face when they strenuously objected.
When asked about Jesse Burchfield’s past Burt said he threw his resume away.
Now that Burchfield has copped a plea with no jail time Burt makes this goofy statement in the Globe:
“This felony charge against Mr. Burchfield brings an end to the long nightmare which I experienced, and I am relieved that the federal government has declared the guilt of the person responsible,” Cohen said in a statement Tuesday. “In lying to the federal government and me, he victimized me, my family, my staff and thousands of people who contributed to my campaign.”
So let me get this straight, “The government has declared the guilt?” Burt, I think a JURY declares guilt but you won’t be going to TRIAL, remember? In a trial facts come out, that is why many parties in mysterious situations like yours who would rather not air dirty laundry settle behind closed doors.
“THOUSANDS of people who contributed?” Now I am not known as a numbers guy but I do have your (probably $300 – $500,000.00 in legal fees ) corrected FEC statement here in my office and it says that between Jan. 2003 to Dec. 2004 you had 854 individual contributions. Not only do I notice how popular you are with people from Maine, New York and Massachusetts but I also noticed how many times most donors made multiple donations, as in, Burt is probably lucky to have 600 individual contributers not thousands.
Looks like Burchfield picked an easy mark. So why aren’t NH Democrats and their “reporter” friends upset and looking for jail time for Jesse?