September 05, 2004

Inside Information

Minnesota's Senior Senator, Mark Dayton is not supporting his campaign with his own personal fortune, as he did in 2000. But his family is contributing, and then some.

"In fund-raising, one of the first things you do is go to close friends and family," said Dinah Dale, the Dayton campaign's finance director.

Among the giving relatives:

• His father, Bruce Dayton, $2,000

• His son, Eric J. Dayton, $4,000

• His brother, Brandt Dayton, $1,000

• His ex-wife, Alida Messenger, $2,000

• His late uncle, Kenneth Dayton, $4,000

• Kenneth Dayton's widow, Judy Dayton, $4,000

Dale noted that the family members make up only a tiny percentage of the thousands of contributors to Dayton's campaign. Also, with individual donations capped at $4,000 per person, the family connections won't come close to making up what Dayton spent four years ago.

Okay, I understand the ex-wife giving money to his campaign to keep him in Washington, as opposed to him being closer to her in Minnesota fulltime if he weren't re-elected. But what's up with the rest of the family? What do they know that we don't know? Even his kid, giving the maximum $4000 so that Dad doesn't come back to Minnesota full time.

This should be a harbinger for other Minnesotans, that the family wants him to stay in Washington.