The “super PAC” formed by former GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain after he dropped out of the presidential race was fueled by just one $50,000 donation from a top Republican donor who used to own and publish the New York Post, according to a just disclosed Federal Election Commission report.
Peter S. Kalikow is a New York city real estate magnate and the former chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. He said he “[hadn’t] been [as] excited about a presidential candidate since Ronald Reagan ran in 1980” when he endorsed Cain’s presidential campaign last year.
Kalikow told his former newspaper he believed the sexual harassment charges that ultimately forced Cain from the presidential race were false:
Kalikow said Cain looked him in the eye and assured him that the allegations of sexual misconduct with past employees, which have rocked his campaign for the past two weeks, were false. Kalikow said, “I believe him.“Herman spoke to me about the allegations and said there was no substance to them at all, and I take him at his word.”
“I take sexual harassment very seriously, and I don’t condone it in any form,” he continued.
The FEC filing represents just a couple weeks of activity for Cain Connections, which was formed on Dec. 14. Kalikow made the donation to Cain Connections on Dec. 23, according to an FEC report. Just one expenditure is listed: $1,373.00 for “PAC Website/Logo/Bus Wrap.”
Ryan J. Reilly
Ryan J. Reilly is a D.C.-based reporter for TPM. Prior to joining TPM, he worked for a news website covering the Justice Department and was a researcher for Bloomberg News. His email address is ryan(at)talkingpointsmemo.com.
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