News Release

Austin, TX:  Texans for Public Justice (TPJ) has identified the employers, occupations and interests of the 24 latest “Pioneer” fundraisers identified by the Bush campaign.   The 24 new pioneers—individuals who each have bundled a minimum of $100,000 in contributions to Bush—bring the total number of pioneers made public to 180. They have raised at least $18 million for the Bush campaign.

 The latest Pioneers—eight of whom are from Florida—includes six lobbyists and public relations executives, 11 corporate executives, high-powered attorneys and a handful of politicians.  They include: Craig Keeland, who heads a company that sells ephedrine weight-loss products (an industry that received favorable regulatory treatment from the Texas Department of Health); John Ong, the ex-chair of B.F. Goodrich and a former head of the Business Roundtable lobbying group; and Massachusetts for-hire lobbyist James Connolly.

 “The Bush campaign is fueled by a small network of high-rolling kingmakers, lobbyists and CEOs,” said Craig McDonald, director of Texans for Public Justice. “Bush admits the Pioneer network has delivered at least $18 million in cash. The actual figure could be millions higher.”

“Bush has yet to come clean on the details of his Pioneer bundling operation,”  said McDonald.  “The public has a right to know who these highrollers are, exactly how much money they have delivered, and what they want from government.”

 The latest Pioneer profiles are posted at the TPJ website (www.tpj.org).

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