Monday, November 22, 2010

Who will Frank Guinta represent?

-

-

"How independent will Bass, Guinta be?"
The Concord Monitor, Letter, November 21, 2010

Now that the elections are over and the best qualified candidates (?) or the candidates with the most out-of-state advertising money won, I wonder who they will represent: the people of New Hampshire who elected them or the people who financed their advertising as a quid pro quo. Or will they blindly follow their leadership, as seems to be the current vogue?

One of the major complaints against U.S. Rep. Carol Shea-Porter was that she blindly followed Speaker Nancy Pelosi. I wonder if these critics will criticize Reps. Charlie Bass and Frank Guinta for blindly following Speaker John Boehner. If they want a committee or subcommittee chairmanship or if they want to have any say, they will blindly follow him.

Will the cost-cutting Congress, both Republicans and Democrats, vote to extend George W. Bush's tax cuts for the wealthy? I'm sure they will because many members of Congress will exceed the $200,000 cutoff - and Rule No. 2 for elected members of Congress is to fatten their wallet.

Similarly, in Concord, will the cost-cutting enthusiasts cut items to balance the budget and/or transfer the expenses to the local cities and towns so that real estate taxes will further cause more people to lose their homes?

SUMNER GOLDMAN
Penacook, NH

----------

"Guinta had no choice"
Letter, For the Concord Monitor, January 31, 2011

I was really angry with U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta when he voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act and tried to take away the fix for the Medicare D "donut hole" problem in particular, but I have decided not to waste my energy on being angry with him.

First of all, the repeal is going nowhere. Second, I do know he had to do it.

Guinta says that the American people want the law repealed, but that's not accurate. People like a lot of the provisions, and many of those who don't like the law wanted one that did more! But Frank really isn't concerned about what the American people or the people of New Hampshire want. He has to answer to other masters than the voters.

He has to answer to the unknown, undisclosed donors who funded all those ads that flooded our airwaves last fall on his behalf. And, for all we know, they might be the source of his mysterious $355,000 bank account that he still won't come clean about. So he really didn't have to think about who he was hurting (children with preexisting conditions, elderly who have to choose between medicine and food) or about voting to add hundreds of billions to the deficit. He really had no choice.

LUCY EWARDS
Northwood, NH

----------

"Guinta inconsistent on deficit reduction"
nashuatelegraph.com - February 7, 2011

I listened to U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta, R-N.H., the other morning on C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal” and was disturbed by the extremist message I heard, wrapped in slick rhetoric.

If Guinta’s overriding concern is the deficit, as he repeatedly asserts, then why did he vote to repeal the health care reform legislation, which the Congressional Budget Office estimates will save $230 billion over 10 years?

I know he and other House Republicans must consider CBO estimates reliable because they tout the CBO estimate for tort reform savings of more than $50 billion.

I find his position incoherent. If budgetary concerns are primary, he should fully support the enacted health care reform legislation that saves hundreds of billions.

I can only conclude that his position is not driven by practical concern for our deficit, but by antigovernment ideology – the idea that the government has no right to make things better for ordinary people.

Of course, if that were the case, we would not have any of our essential social safety net programs like Social Security or Medicare. And Americans would not and do not support that position.

When you unwrap the shiny package, there’s nothing in it for the American people. Guinta’s position is incoherent, impractical and extreme.

Susan Mayer
Lee, NH

----------

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Frank Guinta is a failure

-

-

I have been following the political career of Frank Guinta since he ran for Mayor of Manchester, NH, in 2005. I became so troubled by Frank Guinta's failed leadership that I started a Blog on Frank Guinta in May of 2009 -- the same day Frank Guinta announced his candidacy for U.S. Congress. I hope the voters of New Hampshire's 1st Congressional District will take the time to review his failed public record and policies when they vote in November.

Frank Guinta is against Human Rights! During Mayor Frank Guinta's tenure as Mayor of Manchester, public school students were no longer able to watch such enlightening Human Rights motion pictures as "The Hurricane", "Roots", "Hotel Rwanda", "The Diary of Anne Frank", and/or "Schindler’s List." Frank Guinta is also among the more vocal opponents of marriage for same-sex couples and HB 415 in New Hampshire.

Frank Guinta is against Public Education! As Mayor of Manchester, Frank Guinta neglected and gutted funding for public education. Before Frank Guinta became mayor, three Manchester schools were listed as “in need of improvement.” Afterwards, every school in the district is listed as “in need of improvement” and three schools were put on the state’s list for “corrective action.” Furthermore, as a candidate for U.S. Congress, Frank Guinta proposes to eliminate the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, & the Departments of Energy and Education.

Frank Guinta is against Labor Unions! As Mayor of Manchester, NH, Frank Guinta demanded deep cuts in city worker benefits. Substantial cuts to essential city services and labor were made by Mayor Frank Guinta, while he raised taxes above the rate of inflation, substantially raised fees, supported new Saturday downtown parking fees, diminished emergency or "rainy day" and one-time accounts, and complemented public funds away from the city's public educational system to special interest projects. During Mayor Frank Guinta's tenure, hundreds of local jobs have been lost.

Frank Guinta presents ethical problems for GOP! Frank Guinta recently included a bank account worth $250,000 to $500,000 on his most recent financial disclosure forms. The bank account had never before appeared on his forms, a fact Guinta chalked up to an “inadvertent oversight". If that isn’t money he earned himself, he’s violating campaign finance laws that cap contributions at $2,400 per person.

Frank Guinta supports the controversial conservative leader Sarah Palin. "I really see Sarah bringing a lot of opportunity to this country," Frank Guinta said in early-October of 2008.

Frank Guinta is a favorite of the Washington GOP, taking in leadership PAC contributions from House Majority Leader John Boehner and Minority Whip Eric Cantor. Frank Guinta's campaign opposes federal spending, the economic stimulus bill, and the Employee Free Choice Act. Despite the fact that the number of residents who are uninsured in New Hampshire alone is 143,754, Frank Guinta would repeal the newly enacted healthcare reform law. Frank Guinta is against a woman's right to choose. Frank Guinta opposes the proposed Islamic Center two blocks from the site of the former World Trade Towers in New York City. Frank Guinta has repeatedly come out in support of the controversial new Arizona Law on immigration that critics have called "nazi-esque".

JUST WHAT DOES FRANK GUINTA MEAN WHEN HE STATES: "join me in my quest to take back America"?

Sincerely,
Jonathan A. Melle

Friday, August 27, 2010

Frank Guinta would eliminate the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, & the Departments of Energy and Education

-

-

Source: www.nhinsider.com/press-releases/2010/8/26/nhdp-guinta-wants-to-axe-big-bird-but-supports-budget-bustin.html

----------

"Guinta doesn't get the reality of governing"
seacoastonline.com - Opinion - September 26, 2010 - BY BILL DUNCAN

So now we know that Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter will be running against Frank Guinta for Congress from the 1st Congressional District. There are big issues at stake.

Republicans have run on small government for generations, but the current version of Frank Guinta and his band of tea partiers goes a lot further. Pick any issue. It's hard to imagine a position further to the right than Frank's.

Here's Frank on Social Security in Rochester in May:

"Let's not forget that Social Security is something the government created. And now we're trying to have a government solution to a problem government created. Government's the problem here, ladies and gentlemen. When Social Security was created, we didn't have the wealth of private sector solution for lifetime savings that you do today. We have to honor the obligations that have been made to those who are reliant on the federal government — older generations. But future generations should seek different private sector solutions and have personal responsibility start to lead the way. My kids are 6 and 5. They shouldn't know what Social Security is!"

So there it is. Frank Guinta, the former insurance agent, thinks Social Security should be replaced with private insurance. Carol Shea-Porter says that, in spite of what you hear, Social Security is basically healthy and relatively minor tweaks are needed to ensure the long term financial health of the system.

On a woman's right to choose, Frank was equally certain up in Laconia: his position is that a woman has no right to choose — no exceptions, under any circumstances, from day one, even when her life is at stake. This is an extreme position, but it looks to me indicative of all of Frank's positions.

He castigated Sean Mahoney for not wanting to deport undocumented immigrants. Who would actually think that, as a practical matter, it's actually possible to do that? What kind of country would set out to deport 5 percent of its population? But these kinds of concerns about actually governing are not Frank's concerns. He knows what he thinks.

I've attended a bunch of his events and started to realize that he doesn't actually know stuff — he's mainly got opinions. He wants the United States to pull out of the UN, but at a town hall meeting in August, he didn't know that the United States was the largest (by far) financial supporter of the UN. So, without really understanding the implications of his position, he's proposing to do away with the UN. At his Exeter town hall, he was against health care reform, but couldn't answer questions about health insurance coverage for New Hampshire citizens. If you try to engage him in a discussion about Social Security, you just get the bit about his kids.

He's certain of his positions, but beyond that doesn't seem to know what's going on. But — and this is the worrisome part — he's willing to say anything. The kerfuffle about where he got $355,000 to put into his campaign ($110,000 in the last few days) is a good example. He might just be someone who doesn't pay much attention to detail and forgot to report those assets when he should have. But when questions arose, his campaign said the money came from stocks he sold. Then Frank said the money came from the forgotten bank accounts. He won't release the account records, so it's hard to tell what's going on. Maybe that will get straightened out now that he's made it through the primary.

The picture that emerges to me is of someone loyal to his rhetorical positions and willing to say whatever it takes to prop them up.

Across-the-board spending cuts. Tax cuts. Get rid of the Department of Education and the Department of Energy. All these are totemic positions in the rhetorical world of tea parties and don't-tread-on-me flags. Which is fine. But the notion of a New Hampshire congressman who has great confidence in these positions but doesn't know what's going on — that's scary.

Bill Duncan is a resident of New Castle, New Hampshire.

----------

"Guinta has total disregard for food safety in U.S."
Seacoastonline.com - Opinion - Letter to the Editor - October 30, 2010

Oct. 26 — To the Editor:

Congressional candidate Frank Guinta has asserted that the government has no role in protecting Americans from rotten or poisoned food, or diseased meats, or unsafe drugs. He's good with just leaving that up to the food and meat processing, or drug industry, without any monitoring, inspections, or warnings to the public.

On Oct. 18, Mr. Guinta responded to a question previously posed by Rep. Carol Shea-Porter. Shea-Porter had asked Guinta if he thought the Food and Drug Administration is necessary. Guinta said, "My answer is no. I can go buy fresh farm food from a New Hampshire farmer. I don't need the FDA to make that transaction."

Mr. Guinta, we can't go backwards! The health and safety of the American people depends on it. Apparently, Mr. Guinta is not aware that New Hampshire farms cannot produce rice, coconuts, bananas, lemons, pineapples, avacados and other tropical foods. Apparently, Mr. Guinta has forgotten about the recent, widespread outbreaks of food-borne disease caused by contaminated eggs and lettuce

At the dawn of the 20th century, Upton Sinclair wrote the still famous expose, "The Jungle," which portrayed the shocking conditions in the unregulated meat packing industry. Since the industry was not protecting people from tubercular meat or from meat Sinclair alleged was contaminated by workers, horrified Americans insisted on regulation by the federal government. The scandalous conditions revealed by Sinclair led to the regulation of the food industry — more than 100 years ago. This took place under Republican presidents. During Theodore Roosevelt's presidency, public pressure resulted in the Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, which established the Bureau of Chemistry, and which, in 1930 under Herbert Hoover, became the Food and Drug Administration.

It is essential for the federal government to protect the American public. Please join me in voting for Shea-Porter, who cares about the safety of my children and yours.

Dan Nicholson
Hampton, New Hampshire

----------

www.nhinsider.com/press-releases/2010/11/20/nhdp-starting-in-january-frank-guinta-will-vote-against-nh-f.html

----------

Kathryn Cauble: "What far right thoughts guide Mr. Guinta?"
The Conway Daily Sun, Letters, June 6, 2014

To the editor:

He's back.

Voter fraud does occur but it is extremely rare. All the new irritating and mean spirited laws are to have as many people as possible confront election barriers that will interfere with their "sacred right" — that of casting a vote for the person they prefer.

Mr Guinta has convinced himself that his loss in the 2012 election was due to voter fraud! If in fact this were true it would have required the majority of 100,000 voters to cast their votes in a dishonest manner or fraudulently.

Please remember Mr. Guinta, a Tea Party darling and was the candidate who wished to eliminate the Department of Education, pushed the misled idea of teaching creationism in school and was adamantly against abortion for any reason.

Now is this a person stable? What far right thoughts might guide him in odd and even dangerous actions?

The answer to this rant concerning voter fraud would be to support the current NH Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter by voting for her in the November 2014 election, thus allowing her to continue representing the 99 percent.

Kathryn Cauble
Effingham

----------

"We don't need Guinta's tea party platform"
seacoastonline.com - Opinion: Letter to the Editor, June 14, 2014

June 10 — To the Editor:

Former U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta is trying to win back his seat. He has announced another tour of the district; this time focusing on the economy. Mr. Guinta should be concerned about the economy because while he was in Congress in 2011-12, he and the House majority put policies into place that serve to slow economic growth.

Let's take education: a well-acknowledged path to prosperity. Abolishing the U.S. Department of Education was part of Mr. Guinta's tea party platform. By voting for severe sequester cuts in 2011, Mr. Guinta and his Republican colleagues continue to harm our schools, even today. In a national survey of the American Association of School Administrators, 85 percent of the administrators said that in 2013-14 they had to eliminate teachers and other staff positions, increase class sizes, cut teacher training, and postpone needed long-term investments. The quality of education has decreased.

Sadly, schools serving poor children and those on military bases suffer the most because they rely the most on federal funds.

For the sake of our children and America's future, let's not make the mistake of sending tea party candidate Frank Guinta back to Congress. Our children deserve better.

Beth Olshansky
Durham, New Hampshire

----------


"Guinta's views are too extreme"
seacoastonline.com - Opinion: Letter to the Editor, September 2, 2014

To the Editor:

At a recent Republican debate held in Exeter on Aug. 23, Frank Guinta once again revealed his extreme Tea Party views. When asked if he believes the IRS should be abolished he said, "yes." When asked if he would work to repeal the U.S. Department of Education, he said, "yes." When asked if he believes that the theory of man-made climate change has been scientifically proven, he said, "no." This man's belief system defies reason, not to mention science.

Beth Olshansky
Durham, New Hampshire

----------

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Frank Guinta opposes the proposed Islamic Center two blocks from the site of the former World Trade Towers in New York City

-

-

Do you believe it is appropriate to build a mosque at Ground Zero in NYC? (NOTE: The site is not exactly at Ground Zero; it is two blocks from the site of the former World Trade Towers. It is as much a community center as a place of worship.)

GUINTA: "It’s an inappropriate location for this mosque to be built because it is immediately next to the site where more than 3,000 Americans were killed. / As I’ve said before Jon [Greenberg], I feel it’s an inappropriate location to build a mosque and I would ask the people to consider the emotional scars of more than 3,000 Americans being killed at that location.”

Source: NHPR News' Jon Greenberg story "Islam, Ground Zero and the Politicians" on August 23, 2010.

READER's Comment:

Park 51 Mosque
John S. Hancock - 8/24/2010

This American project initiated by our fellow citizens is called the Park 51 Mosque which has a board of directors composed of Christians, Jews and Muslims. They own the building in question that's almost three blocks away from Ground Zero, won't be visable from there and is commendably attempting to foster interfaith understanding. Those candidates who politicize this contrived controversy are capitulating to anti-Muslim bigotry.

----------

NOTE: Frank Guinta has repeatedly come out in support of the new controversial Arizona Law on immigration in his campaign for U.S. Congress.

----------

"'Ground Zero Mosque' Clears Legal Hurdle to Build"
By RESHMA KIRPALANI - ABC News - July 13, 2011

The backers of the controversial "Ground Zero Mosque" have won a court fight clearing the way for them to build the mosque and community center complex two blocks from the site of the 9/11 terror attack.

In a decision on Friday that was made public today, New York State Supreme Justice Paul Feinman dismissed a lawsuit by former firefighter Timothy Brown who argued that New York City was wrong to allow the destruction of a 150-year-old building to make way for the Islamic center.

The ex-firefighter who was among those who responded to the terror attack on the World Trade Center said the old building had been struck by debris during the collapse of the twin towers and was a "living representative of the heroic structures that commemorate the events of that day."

In a 15-page decision Feinman wrote, "Mr. Brown's claim that his ability to commemorate will be injured, is not yet recognized under the law as a concrete injury that can establish standing. Such an injury, although palpable to Brown, is immeasurable by a court."

The American Center for Law and Justice, a conservative legal group which filed the lawsuit on Brown's behalf, said they plan to appeal the ruling.

Ground Zero Mosque Clears Legal Hurdle to Build

"This decision fails to give appropriate consideration to first responders and others who risked their lives and lost loved ones on Sept. 11," ACLJ attorney Brett Joshpe said in a statement.

The ACLJ "remain confident that this mosque will never rise above Ground Zero."

Organizers of the project, officially called Park 51, declined to comment.

Brown and the ACLJ were appealing a ruling last summer by the city's Landmarks Preservation Commission which decided to allow a 150-year-old Park Place building to be razed to make way for the center.

Park 51 has been a source of national controversy since its unveiling last May. Opponents as well as supporters demonstrated at Ground Zero in reaction to the commission's decision to allow the mosque last August. President Obama was drawn into the controversy when he initially endorsed the mosque.

"As a citizen, and as president, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country," Obama said at a White House ceremony last summer that marked the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. "That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan in accordance with local laws and ordinances."

But in a visit to the Gulf Coast, Obama later dialed back saying that he supported the Muslims community's right to build the mosque, but was not sure it was a good idea to build so close to Ground Zero.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

----------

"Guinta voted against individual privacy rights"

SeacoastOnline.com - Letter to the Editor, July 21, 2014

July 19 — To the Editor:

Frank Guinta was only in Congress for two years, but he had the chance several times to protect our privacy and failed each time. He voted to allow employers to obtain employees' Facebook and e-mail passwords. But employers shouldn't be sneaking peeks into their employees' private communications. He even voted to give the government the "right" to spy on our library records and see what we read!

I hope we won't let Mr. Guinta back in Congress in November to take away even more of our privacy rights.

Charles Proulx

Raymond, NH

----------

Sunday, August 15, 2010

Frank Guinta presents ethical problems for GOP

-

-

"Bradley: Guinta should drop out"
POLITICO, By Kasie Hunt, August 13, 2010

Most people wouldn’t forget about a bank account with a quarter million dollars in it — and if New Hampshire GOP congressional candidate Frank Guinta doesn’t have an explanation for doing just that, he should drop out of the race, former New Hampshire GOP Rep. Jeb Bradley told POLITICO.

Guinta, the former mayor of Manchester, included a bank account worth $250,000 to $500,000 on his most recent financial disclosure forms, the Manchester Union Leader reported Thursday. The bank account had never before appeared on his forms, a fact Guinta chalked up to an “inadvertent oversight.”

It’s a problem, because Guinta has loaned his campaign $245,000 of the $577,000 he’s raised—and if that isn’t money he earned himself, he’s violating campaign finance laws that cap contributions at $2,400 per person.

“If there’s not a satisfactory explanation,” Guinta “absolutely,” should drop out, Bradley told POLITICO. “It would be an obstacle, I think, that would prevent any nominee that had any kind of issue, to successfully compete against Carol Shea-Porter.

“I think it’s very damaging ... how you forget something like that is just pretty hard to explain. The average person wouldn’t forget,” Bradley said. “If you were Warren Buffett, possibly.”

Guinta is running in a crowded Republican primary for the right to challenge Democratic Rep. Carol Shea-Porter in the state’s 1st District. While the National Republican Congressional Committee is officially neutral, Guinta is a favorite of the Washington GOP, taking in leadership PAC contributions from House Majority Leader John Boehner and Minority Whip Eric Cantor.

Bradley hasn’t officially endorsed, “but in the interest of full disclosure, I have a Sean Mahoney sticker on my car,” he said, referring to the publisher and small businessman who is also running in the primary.

But Bradley, who was elected the 1st District’s congressman in 2002 but lost to Shea-Porter in 2006 and again when he tried to reclaim the seat in 2008, is worried that a Guinta nomination could hamper Republican efforts to highlight Democrats’ own ethics travails.

“Ethics are a key issue, and they’re a key issue on the Democratic side, and all people have to be held to high standards,” Bradley said. “It raises serious, serious questions.”

“Jeb Bradley is a distinguished former member of Congress, but in this case he is speaking without knowledge of the facts,” Brett Bosse, Guinta’s campaign director, said in a statement.

“Frank Guinta amended his financial disclosure report last month, after questions were raised concerning the source of what was proven to be a legitimate personal loan. The loan came from a series of accounts Guinta has had since March of 1996. Amending disclosure forms is a common occurrence. Another candidate in this race also amended the same disclosure form. And according to the FEC, a third candidate was fined $9,000 for failing to file a campaign finance report in 2002.”

----------

2010 NH 1st District Congress
"EXCLUSIVE: Dems file FEC, Congressional complaints against Guinta"
by James Pindell, WMUR Political Scoop, September 30, 2010

WMURPoliticalScoop.com was the first to learn that today New Hampshire Democrats filed official complaints with the Federal Elections Commission and Clerk of Congress against Republican First Congressional District candidate Frank Guinta.

The complaints center around the amended financial report in August that followed Guinta loaning himself $355,000 that he didn’t appear to have. The amended form showed a bank account containing up to $500,000.

Guinta has called the mystery bank account a clerical error, but he has refused to show bank records to prove it’s not a new account, which would be an illegal campaign donation.

Executive Director of the NH Democratic Party, Mike Brunelle, told WMURPoliticalScoop.com that “the math just doesn’t add up. It’s fuzzy to say the best. It’s about time that he just comes clean, releases his bank records and puts this to bed.”

This is the second time the FEC has been formally notified of the issue. In August Republican activist Chris Wolfe requested an investigation, and he tells “Scoop” that he is updating his complaint with new information in days.

When asked for a response about today’s complaints, Guinta campaign spokesman Brett Bosse released a statement that said, “Congresswoman Shea-Porter is scared about her failed record in Washington, and is desperate to avoid it. She’s afraid to talk about voting for the Obamacare takeover and failed stimulus. And just yesterday she cast the deciding vote to quit and come home without passing a budget or extending tax cuts for all Americans.”

----------

"Shea-Porter questions foe’s records"
By JAKE BERRY Staff Writer, Nashua Telegraph, October 5, 2010

Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter, seeking her third term in office, called Monday for her opponent, former Manchester Mayor Frank Guinta, to release his bank records to better explain his finances to voters.

Guinta, the Republican nominee in the 1st Congressional District, has drawn heat throughout the campaign after he initially failed to include a bank account between $300,000 and $500,000 in his federal campaign filings.

Calling the omission an oversight, Guinta quickly updated the filings to show that he loaned himself $245,000 for the campaign. “I made a very simple error,” he said last month in a debate leading up to the Sept. 10 primary election.

But moving toward November’s general election, opponents have continued to paint the issue as a matter of ethics, saying Guinta’s failure to report and explain the account calls into question his judgment and his connections.

“It’s about time that Frank Guinta owns up to who’s behind the bank account,” Robert Moller, Shea-Porter’s campaign manager, said Monday. “It’s suspicious, and people should want to know where the money came from.”

Responding to Shea-Porter’s request, officials from the Guinta campaign said the matter is political posturing and Shea-Porter, a Rochester Democrat, is looking to draw attention away from legislative record.

“Congresswoman Shea-Porter is scared to talk about her failed record in Washington and is desperate to avoid it,” Guinta spokesman Brett Bosse wrote Monday in a statement. “She’s afraid to talk about voting for the Obamacare takeover and failed stimulus.”

But other opponents across the state disagree. Last week, officials from the state Democratic Party filed formal complaints with the Federal Elections Commission and the clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives, claiming that Guinta’s personal contributions to his campaign don’t match his personal income or assets.

As mayor of Manchester from 2006-10, Guinta made an annual salary of $72,000, according to the complaints.

Neither the Elections Commission nor the House Clerk’s office has yet responded to complaints, according to Michael Brunelle, executive director of the state Democratic Party.

“The numbers really don’t add up and the math is fuzzy at best,” Brunelle said Monday. “He never lists having all kinds of properties, never lists having all kinds of income and assets, and all of a sudden, he has (that much money) to contribute.

“The fact of the matter is that if Frank Guinta wants to put this to be forever behind him, all he has to do is release his bank statements,” Brunelle said.

Federal campaign reports, filed at the end of September, show that Guinta has collected about $910,000 this campaign cycle, including the $245,000 he loaned the campaign, and he has about $158,000 left on-hand.

Shea-Porter’s campaign has taken in about $997,000 with no personal loans, according to the Federal Elections Commission, and as of the end of August, she had about $529,000 left on-hand.

An opinion poll released last week by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center shows Guinta ahead with the support of 49 percent of the voters; 39 percent said they support Shea-Porter.

“(This bank account matter) is a serious issue, and it’s certainly something voters can relate to,” said Andrew Smith, a professor of political science and director of the Survey Center. “It’s something Mayor Guinta hasn’t done a good enough job explaining, and until he does, it’s something that’s certainly fair game (for Shea-Porter).”
-
Jake Berry can be reached at 594-6402 or jberry@nashuatelegraph.com.
-
----------

"NH's Shea-Porter hits Guinta on source of loan"
By Holly Ramer, Associated Press Writer, October 7, 2010

CONCORD, N.H. --Democratic Rep. Carol Shea-Porter began running a television ad Thursday suggesting that her Republican challenger has accepted illegal campaign donations.

The 30-second ad features images and quotes from Republicans who have questioned where Frank Guinta got the money to loan his campaign $355,000, including Guinta's primary opponent, Sean Mahoney, and his former boss, former Rep. Jeb Bradley.

"If Republicans and conservatives don't trust Frank Guinta, why should the rest of us?" the ad's announcer asks.

Guinta, the former mayor of Manchester, amended a disclosure form last summer to list a previously unreported bank account holding up to $500,000 but has refused to show a bank statement that proves the account's existence. His critics have questioned how someone whose chief income over the last decade was his $72,000-a-year mayoral salary could save that amount.

"Frank Guinta is hiding something and New Hampshire voters deserve to know what it is," said Shea-Porter campaign manager Robert Moller. "I'd like to know who would forget about a bank account with half a million dollars in it. It's as if a magical bank account suddenly appeared out of thin air, just when he needed it to fund his run for Congress."

The state Democratic Party recently filed a complaint with the Federal Elections Commission asking it to investigate Guinta's financial reports.

"The bottom line is there is no way that Frank Guinta has the personal wealth to donate himself that amount of money," the party's executive director, Mike Brunelle, said Thursday. "If he was able to save when he wasn't really making any money, he should share those secrets with the working class people of the 1st Congressional District so we can learn how to make a buck quick."

Guinta has repeatedly said that he made a mistake in filling out a form, which he voluntarily fixed when it came to his attention. His spokesman said Thursday the issue already has been vetted.

"This attack ad shows Congresswoman Shea-Porter is embarrassed of her record of voting with Nancy Pelosi 98 percent of the time and is scared to tell the rest of us about it," Brett Bosse said. "New Hampshire voters are concerned with how we are going to fix the economy, cut spending, and help small businesses create jobs. Congresswoman Shea-Porter is telling the rest of us that these issues aren't important."

Shea-Porter's campaign declined to say how much it is spending to run the ad, which is airing on WMUR-TV and cable channels. Guinta also plans to debut a new ad Friday in which he argues that government is too big, spends too much and hurts small businesses.

----------

"More allegations against Guinta" - "Democrats: TV ad illegally coordinated"
By Ben Leubsdorf, Concord Monitor (online), 10/12/2010

The New Hampshire Democratic Party filed a second complaint yesterday with the Federal Election Commission against Republican congressional candidate Frank Guinta, alleging Guinta's campaign and a group headed by former New York governor George Pataki have improperly coordinated on campaign advertising.

The complaint by Michael Brunelle, executive director of the state party, was filed yesterday and accuses Guinta, his campaign and Revere America, a political group chaired by Pataki, of violating federal campaign finance law in the 1st District race.

Brunelle wrote that Pataki's group paid $327,500 on Sept. 22 to Magnolia Media, "a shell entity . . . which is closely affiliated with the media consulting company retained by the Guinta Committee, Jamestown Associates," for a television ad against Democratic Rep. Carol Shea-Porter. The ad is critical of Shea-Porter for her vote in favor of health care reform.

"Because Jamestown Associates effectively served as media consultant and buyer to both the Guinta campaign and Revere America, Jamestown Associates was in a unique position to be able to coordinate the Revere America advertisements with the Guinta campaign's own media strategy," Brunelle wrote.

That constitutes an illegal in-kind donation to Guinta, a former Manchester mayor, and his campaign by Revere America, Brunelle wrote.

Brett Bosse, spokesman for Guinta's campaign, said the allegation isn't true. "The New Hampshire Democratic Party is lying, and is desperate to cover up Congresswoman Shea-Porter's pathetic record in Washington," he wrote in an e-mail. "Carol Shea-Porter is embarrassed about her record of voting with Nancy Pelosi 98 percent of the time, and is desperate to hide the truth from voters. This false attack is part of a coordinated 'we can't win on the issues' campaign on the part of the Democratic Party."

In an e-mailed statement, Chris Larson, political director for Revere America, said: "Allegations like those made by the New Hampshire Democratic Party are not unusual during the election season. Revere America and its vendors carefully follows all laws and regulations regarding its election related advertisements and is confident it has done so in this case."

State Democrats had earlier filed a complaint against Guinta over a previously undisclosed bank account worth between $250,001 and $500,000. Guinta said he forgot to include the account on a financial disclosure form.

(Ben Leubsdorf can be reached at 369-3307 or bleubsdorf@cmonitor.com.)

----------
-

-
www.nashuatelegraph.com/newsstatenewengland/882591-227/candidates-stand-on-solid-financial-ground.html#
-
Guinta

Guinta made news this summer over an omission on his financial disclosure statement.

After being questioned by The Telegraph about his finances and loans to his 1st Congressional District campaign, Guinta acknowledged that for the last two years, he hadn’t included $250,000 to $500,000 in accounts he had with Bank of America.

He said they were honest mistakes, but Democrats have questioned where the money came from.

Guinta also said he had loaned his campaign $245,000, but that it was his own funds.

He earned $72,000 in his last year as mayor of Manchester, according to his personal disclosure statement covering January 2009 to April 2010.

Guinta reported assets of $856,018 to $1.92 million, and unearned income of $16,006 to $55,000 from those assets.

His liabilities include two mortgages and two college loans, totaling between $280,003 and $600,000.

Based on an appraisal of Guinta’s statements, Valpey said the candidate appears to be “doing a good job balancing his personal finances with running for office.”

----------

"NH Dems seek criminal probe into Guinta's money"
By Holly Ramer, Associated Press Writer, October 28, 2010

CONCORD, N.H. -- The director of the New Hampshire Democratic Party asked a federal prosecutor Thursday to investigate whether Republican congressional candidate Frank Guinta lied on his financial disclosure forms.

In a letter to U.S. Attorney John Kacavas, Mike Brunelle requested a criminal investigation into the disclosure forms Guinta has filed with the Federal Elections Commission and the clerk of the U.S. House. Brunelle already has complaints pending with both those offices, but said Kacavas' office also has the power to investigate candidates for willfully and knowingly making false statements, a crime punishable by up to five years in prison.

Guinta, the former Manchester mayor, has loaned his campaign $355,000 in his bid to unseat Democratic incumbent Carol Shea-Porter in Tuesday's election. In July, he amended his disclosure statement to add a previously unreported bank account worth up to $500,000. Before that, his statements listed investments valued at between $106,000 and $415,000.

Brunelle wrote that if the account existed, Guinta should have reported it before he began his congressional campaign.

"His refusal to produce such documentation is a breach of public trust and invites the inference that a significant illegal campaign contribution in the $250,000 to $500,000 range occurred," Brunelle said.

Republicans first raised questions about the money during the primary, and Shea-Porter has picked up where they left off, frequently grilling Guinta on the issue during their recent debates.

"Trailing in poll after poll, Congresswoman Shea-Porter is desperately hiding behind partisan Democrats to distract from her record of supporting the failed stimulus, Obamacare takeover, and voting with Nancy Pelosi 98 percent of the time," Guinta's spokesman, Brett Bosse, said Thursday.

Guinta himself has insisted the money was not an illegal campaign donation.

"For approximately 20 years prior to my service as mayor, my wife and I both worked in the private sector. I'm proud of the fact that we were both successful," Guinta said during a debate. "I'm standing on principle. I don't think it's necessary to actually open up my bank statements to every single person, and if you don't like that answer, that is your prerogative."

Brunelle said the U.S. attorney's office was an appropriate choice to handle an investigation because it can obtain banking documents quickly that would resolve the matter.

"If Mr. Guinta has done nothing wrong as he claims, an expeditious investigation will benefit him and relieve the public's concerns at the same time," Brunelle wrote.

----------

"Still waiting for answers from Guinta"
By Mike Brunelle, My Turn, Concord Monitor, 11/12/2010

Where did all that money come from?

During his campaign for Congress, Frank Guinta refused to produce proof that more than $350,000 that was funneled into his campaign was not the result of an illegal donation. As a result, both Democrats and Republicans called on the Federal Elections Commission to investigate the source of this mystery money, and a similar complaint was filed with the U.S. Attorney's office in New Hampshire.

Recently, the FEC requested additional copies of the complaint and source materials filed by the New Hampshire Democratic Party. We are complying with this request and will do the same for any future requests that are made. This was not an election year issue. We are committed to ensuring that Granite State citizens are told the truth, that justice is served, and that if Congressman-elect Guinta broke the law, he and anyone else involved is held fully accountable.

Over the summer, Guinta amended his financial disclosure form to add a bank account worth between a quarter and half million dollars.

Not only had this account not appeared on his two previous disclosure forms filed with the FEC, nor his mayoral or aldermanic disclosure forms, but it was worth more than all the rest of his assets combined.

Half his life savings

It seemed suspicious to people of all political persuasions that Guinta forgot to disclose half his life savings in a clerical error. It was also dubious that, during the worst recession in over 75 years, someone who had been a full time student, then a state representative, an alderman, and mayor over the past 12 years could save hundreds of thousands of dollars.

This suspicion is compounded by the fact that at the same time he was raising a family and had to take out a very large mortgage to purchase his personal residence. In addition, he borrowed money to buy a small residential condominium; when he bought a three-family investment property, he had to sell that condominium and take out another mortgage to pay the purchase price - despite all that money allegedly sitting in his bank account.

The explanations that Guinta has offered since Republicans first brought this issue to the public's attention have been equally confusing and implausible.

First, his campaign manager said the money was from "stock market and mutual fund assets."

But Guinta himself quickly contradicted that notion, claiming he earned the money "working in the working world," and that his campaign manager was "wrong."

'Not very likely'

New Hampshire Public Radio tested this latest assertion.

It compiled all of Guinta's work history, annual salaries and possible investment and rental income. NHPR's conclusion was that it was "not very likely" that Guinta was able to earn the money himself.

The fact is, we have no idea where this money came from.

It could be from relatives, a campaign supporter, a corporation or dropped out of the sky.

But if the money came from anywhere but Guinta's own savings, then federal law has been violated.

New Hampshire deserves a congressman who is honest and transparent with the voters.

That is why we will continue to pursue this issue to the fullest extent of the law, or until Guinta releases his bank statements proving that this money was not an illegal campaign contribution, and that he hasn't violated the public trust.

(Mike Brunelle is executive director of the New Hampshire Democratic Party.)

----------

"Financial questions follow 4 Republican freshmen to Congress"
By T.W. Farnam, Washington Post Staff Writer, December 1, 2010

Four freshman lawmakers are entering Congress amid questions and controversy over their campaign and personal finances.

Reps.-elect Stephen Fincher (R-Tenn.) and Frank Guinta (R-N.H.) are facing questions over the source of personal funds they lent their campaigns. In Florida, incoming Rep. David Rivera (R) amended several years of financial reports after their accuracy was challenged, and incoming Sen. Marco Rubio (R) was accused of using Republican Party credit cards for personal expenses.

The questions come at a time of renewed focus on ethics in Congress.

On Thursday, a coalition of watchdog groups plans to press House leaders to preserve the independent ethics watchdog that Democrats created after the 2006 elections. The Office of Congressional Ethics, an independent body separate from the ethics committee, faces possible budget cuts in the next Congress.

The incoming House speaker, John Boehner (R-Ohio), has not taken a position on the issue, but he fought creation of the office. The body must be included in the House rules passed at the beginning of each Congress, a process that lawmakers could use to scuttle the panel.

When Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) took control of the chamber in 2006, she famously pledged to "drain the swamp" and clean up the image of Congress. But Democrats have been dogged by their own issues. On Thursday, the House will vote on whether to censure Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) for problems surrounding his financial disclosure forms, unpaid taxes and other issues.

In an interview with the National Review Online, incoming House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) recognized the importance of ethics issues and the need for the new majority to keep a clean record. "I think that as Republicans emerge as a new governing majority, it is incumbent upon us to institute a zero-tolerance policy - that we understand there are reasons for our being fired in '06 and '08," Cantor said.

The controversies around the four freshmen are unlikely to escalate but could nevertheless cause early headaches for the GOP.

Fincher, a gospel singer and farmer, reported a $250,000 campaign loan from his personal funds ahead of his primary for the western Tennessee seat vacated by Rep. John Tanner (D).

But according to his personal financial disclosure reports filed with the House, Fincher did not have $250,000 in assets to give to his campaign. His only income for the past two years has come from his farm, which is his sole asset.

The Gates Banking and Trust Co., it turned out, had lent Fincher $250,000. Fincher's father sits on the bank's board of directors.

Democrats seized on the issue and filed complaints with the Federal Election Commission, which asked for responses from the bank and the campaign, according to lawyers for both.

Now it is clear that Fincher made a mistake in his reporting.

"It was a loan he took out for the campaign," said Elliot Berke, a lawyer for Fincher's campaign. "There may have been some issue with how the loan was reported to the FEC, but we're confident that the loan itself complied with all laws and regulations."

J. Robert Walker, a lawyer for the bank, said there was sufficient collateral for the loan, which has already been repaid in full.

Guinta amended his financial disclosure reports, showing an additional bank account worth between $250,000 and $500,000. His form had previously shown assets between $100,000 and $300,000.

The forms were given heightened scrutiny because Guinta had reported personally lending $355,000 to his campaign as of mid-October, the latest information available.

Guinta's office did not return a call seeking comment. He has previously said that the bank account was simply omitted from his financial disclosure forms in error and that the money comes from real estate transactions and insurance consulting.

Rivera also made changes to his financial disclosure reports after local press raised questions. Rivera had reported income from the U.S. Agency for International Development, but the agency said Rivera and his firm had never worked for them.

Rivera's office did not return a call seeking comment. In an article earlier this year in the Miami Herald, Rivera said the mix-up came because he worked for a subcontractor to USAID and not the agency itself.

Also in Florida, Rubio, one of the GOP's darlings of this election cycle, was dogged by allegations by the press and opponents that he used credit cards provided by the Florida Republican Party for personal items, such as repairs to the family minivan.

"Never at any time did Marco use party money to pay for personal expenses," said Todd Harris, a Rubio consultant, "and any time something that was not party-related was charged to his American Express he paid for it himself directly to American Express."

-

"DeanBarker" wrote:

Thank you for finally addressing Frank Guinta's campaign finance scandal on the national level. A few more details about it that deserve scrutiny:

* Questions about Guinta's mystery bank accounts are bi-partisan. The first FEC complaint filed over this was from a Republican. The famously right-wing Union Leader refused to endorse Republican Guinta. And Former Republican Congressman Jeb Bradley, who held the seat Guinta is about to hold, stated that Guinta should drop out if he did not explain the money. And despite repeated requests from the media throughout the campaign, Guinta refused to produce a simple bank statement showing the money was his.

* As this report from New Hampshire Public Radio shows, logic and common sense show that the $355,000 Guinta loaned himself could not have possibly come from him.

http://www.nhpr.org/assessing-frank-guintas-finances

12/2/2010 5:38 AM

----------

"John DiStaso's Granite Status: U.S. House panel OKs Guinta disclosure reports"
By JOHN DISTASO, Senior Political Reporter, NH Union Leader, December 15, 2010

GUINTA DISCLOSURE UPDATE. U.S. Rep.-elect Frank Guinta's camp received what it views as good news from the U.S. House committee that focuses on ethics this week.

The general counsel for the U.S. House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct informed Guinta on Tuesday that the committee reviewed his candidate financial disclosure reports "and subsequent amendments thereto, and have determined that they are in substantial compliance" with the federal government ethics law.

"As a result," wrote the counsel, Stan Simpson, "your reports have been approved by the Committee and no further action on your part is necessary."

Guinta came under fire first by Republican primary foe Sean Mahoney and then by general election foe Carol Shea-Porter and the Democratic Party regarding the source of $245,000 in loans and $110,000 in contributions Guinta made to his campaign.

Guinta in July amended an earlier financial disclosure report by adding a bank account of between $250,000 and $500,000, which he has said is the source of the money. It's been unclear where that account came from since Guinta had not listed it on earlier financial disclosure reports.

The Democratic Party insisted Guinta produce bank statements. When Guinta refused, the Democrats filed complaints with the Clerk of the U.S. House and the Federal Election Commission.

The e-mail received by the Guinta camp this week is not specifically in response to the complaint the Democrats filed with the House, but is instead the result of a standard review the ethics committees does of all House members.

But this response is viewed by the Guinta camp as an important indication that it is in compliance with all applicable laws.

The Guinta camp, we're told, has heard nothing from the House or the FEC specifically in regard to the Democratic complaints.

Shea-Porter spokesman Jamie Radice said the letter being put out by the Guinta camp is worthless.

"This is a standard form that does not take into account the substance of the filing," she said. "Unfortunately for Mr. Guinta, there is nothing standard about his finances."

"Until Frank Guinta, reveals where he got the more than $350,000 he funneled to his campaign, we will not rest," said state Democratic Party spokesman Harrell Kirstein. "It's unacceptable that a New Hampshire member of Congress has such a serious ethical cloud hanging over him."

----------

"FEC takes first step in NH rep.-elect's case"
By Holly Ramer, Associated Press, December 16, 2010

CONCORD, N.H.—The Federal Elections Commission has taken a preliminary step toward investigating U.S. Rep.-elect Frank Guinta's personal finances.

The commission this week told state Democratic Party director Mike Brunelle that it has assigned a case number to his complaint and that Guinta will have 15 days to respond once he is notified.

Guinta, the former Manchester mayor who defeated Democratic Rep. Carol Shea-Porter in November, amended a disclosure form in July to add a previously unreported bank account worth up to $500,000, raising questions about how he had been able to loan his campaign $355,000.

Democrats have filed complaints with the FEC, the clerk of the U.S. House and the U.S. attorney's office seeking investigations into the account. They called on Guinta to show bank records proving the account's earlier existence and have questioned how someone whose chief income over the last decade was his $72,000-a-year mayoral salary could save that amount.

"It's unacceptable that a New Hampshire member of Congress has such a serious ethical cloud hanging over him," said Democratic Party spokesman Harrell Kirstein.

Neither the House nor the U.S. attorney's office have responded specifically to those complaints, but earlier this week, the general counsel for the House standards committee told Guinta that it had reviewed his reports and determined that they are in substantial compliance with the federal ethics laws.

Guinta's finances first came under fire by his rivals in the Republican primary, and Shea-Porter kept up the criticism during the general election. During the campaign, Guinta, 40, flatly denied the money was an illegal campaign donation and said his wife saved it working in the private sector before he was elected mayor in 2005.

Guinta's chief of staff declined to comment Thursday. The office has not yet received the FEC letter.

The Democrats' complaint must overcome several hurdles before the FEC starts investigating. An FEC staffer would have to recommend that the commission investigate and four commissioners would have to agree. During an investigation, the commission has the power to subpoena documents and individuals.

----------

"Frank Guinta needs to explain mystery money"
SeacoastOnline.com - Letter to the Editor, July 26, 2014

July 25 — To the Editor:

Now that former U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta has decided to run for Congress again, I think it's time for a reminder about his still-unexplained 2010 campaign bank account of $355,000 — the one that he "forgot" to report. To this day, Mr. Guinta refuses to say where he got a third of a million dollars on his thoroughly middle-class salary as mayor of Manchester, though he did deny getting it from his parents, who in 2010 sold their home in New Jersey.

In 2011 and 2012, Mr. Guinta falsely claimed that he had been cleared, but in fact he is still under investigation by the Federal Election Commission. Because of this scandal, a citizen watchdog organization named him one of the 14 most corrupt members of Congress in 2011. You can read about it in detail here: www.crewsmostcorrupt.org/mostcorrupt/entry/frank-guinta.

His refusal to explain where he got the money caused the FEC investigation. State Sen. Jeb Bradley said in August 2010 that if Guinta couldn't explain the money, he shouldn't run. That was good advice. Why won't he clear this up? A candidate for public office owes the public an explanation if he expects people to trust and vote for him.

Mr. Guinta refuses to explain "on principle." Please! The only principle he is violating is that of the public trust.

Charles Proulx
Raymond, New Hampshire

----------

"Frank Guinta’s money problems"
For the Concord Monitor, Opinion: Letter to the Editor, July 28, 2014

Frank Guinta is running for Congress again.

He ran in 2010 and left his campaign with a debt of $335,000.

After the 2012 election he still had a debt of $315,000, even though his campaign took in more than $1.8 million. Now in 2014, Guinta’s debt is still about $290,000.

Why would you vote for someone who doesn’t believe in paying his debts even when he had millions to do so? Why would you believe anything he says about debts and deficits? Why would you contribute to his campaign today? Is Guinta really running to get elected or just to pay off old debts with new campaign contributions?

WALTER HAMILTON
Portsmouth, New Hampshire

----------

"FEC hits Guinta with campaign finance reporting errors"
By Kathleen Ronayne, Associated Press, January 9, 2015

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta is once again on the radar of the Federal Election Commission for failing to follow campaign finance disclosure rules.

The FEC sent a letter to Guinta this week highlighting several errors in his post-election finance report. Guinta, a Republican, defeated former Rep. Carol Shea-Porter in November to win a second term in Congress.

Many of the errors were failures to appropriately label or record contributions but in at least one case, Guinta accepted more money than is allowed under federal law. In a response dated Friday, Guinta's campaign office said it is returning the excess money and correcting the data entry errors.

"We will re-emphasize the importance of these reports with our campaign staff and we are taking steps to improve our internal procedures to make sure an error like this is not repeated in the future," the letter said in response to the failure to report in a timely manner donations made near the end of the campaign.

This is not the first time Guinta has been in the FEC's sights. During his 2010 campaign, Guinta loaned himself $355,000, which came from a $500,000 personal bank account that he originally had not disclosed. The New Hampshire Democratic Party filed a complaint with the FEC and, four years later, the complaint is still under investigation. Democrats unsuccessfully used the issue against Guinta again in 2014.

----------

"The shadows that follow Guinta"
The Seacoast Online, Letters, January 22, 2015

To the Editor:

With reference to Election 2014, the Associated Press (AP) just reported that Congressman Guinta has new problems. "U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta is once again on the radar of the Federal Election Commission for failing to follow campaign finance disclosure rules."

And last fall, candidate Guinta stated in a political ad that Carol Shea-Porter was lying, that he was “100 percent” cleared of violating campaign finance laws by the House Ethics Committee, and then stated in a debate that the Federal Election Commission (FEC) had cleared him. Why did he name two different agencies? Knowing that a Republican and the NH Democratic Party had both filed complaints with the FEC, not the House Ethics Committee, I called both agencies. The House Press Office found no evidence of a complaint being filed against Guinta. As to the FEC complaint, Judith Ingram, FEC Press Officer reported :

“The Commission did receive one more complaint in which Mr. Guinta was a respondent and the N.H. Democratic Party was a complainant. Unfortunately, we cannot provide any information about that complaint. To protect the interests of those involved in a complaint, the law requires that any Commission action on a MUR be kept strictly confidential until the case is resolved. 2 U.S.C. § 437g (a)(12).”

As to this charge, AP confirmed "...four years later, the complaint is still under investigation,” and that Guinta refused comment.

Since the FEC investigation remains open, Mr. Guinta's statements cannot be true. The public expects the truth from Congressman Guinta, and a final report from the FEC.

Bob Perry
Strafford, New Hampshire

----------

"After FEC investigation, Guinta campaign agrees to pay back $355K: Money was subject of questions from Democrats for years"
By Josh McElveen, WMUR News, May 12, 2015

MANCHESTER, N.H. — U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta, R-N.H., has agreed to pay back hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign money used in his first run for Congress in 2010.

The agreement follows a lengthy investigation by the Federal Election Commission. News 9's Josh McElveen obtained the agreement with the FEC signed by Guinta's attorney.

For years, Democrats, particularly former U.S. Rep. Carol Shea-Porter, refused to let up on questions about money that was loaned to Guinta's congressional campaign in 2010. While Guinta always chalked it up to politics, he has now agreed to write a check.

The question has dogged Guinta for years, starting in the summer of 2010 when he failed to disclose the source of what he said was a roughly $250,000 personal loan to his congressional campaign. At the time, he chalked it up to a bookkeeping error.

But because financial statements at the time didn't show Guinta had that kind of wealth, Democrats bluntly charged that he accepted the large sum of money from someone, shattering FEC rules that cap individual campaign donations at $2,400.

For five years, Guinta has remained steadfast that he did nothing wrong. On Tuesday, News 9 obtained the conciliation agreement that states:

"Between June of 2009 and September of 2010, Guinta received $381,000 in the form of checks made payable to him, drawn from accounts held in Guinta's parents' names, to which Guinta contends he had an equitable interest."

The agreement goes on to say that Guinta used that money to make $355,000 in loans to his campaign committee. It also says that Guinta's campaign "accepted excessive contributions as a result in a violation" of FEC rules.

To resolve the complaint, Guinta's campaign committee has agreed to pay back $355,000 within 12 months and pay a $15,000 fine.

Guinta sent News 9 a statement saying the agreement will end the investigation.

"I have long had an equitable interest in this account which was set up with my family; and, for nearly two decades have made deposits -- which, including interest, exceed the amount I loaned the campaign," Guinta said. "I decided to reach an agreement with the FEC so that I can end the distractions and focus on serving hard-working Granite Staters."

----------

"Frank Guinta agrees to repay 2010 campaign contribution, pay fine"
By Tim Buckland, New Hampshire Union Leader, May 13, 2015

U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta has agreed to repay $355,000 he maintains he loaned himself during his first run for Congress in 2010, along with a $15,000 fine to settle a complaint filed against the two-term Republican with the Federal Election Commission.

The issue of how the money appeared in Guinta’s campaign account has hung over Guinta since August 2010. His rivals in the Republican primary election, as well as the New Hampshire Democratic Party, notified the FEC about the cash infusion, which they alleged violated FEC rules that, at the time, capped individual contributions at $2,400.

“In 2010, I loaned my campaign money; and, in the course of navigating the bureaucracy of the Federal Election Commission (FEC) as a first time candidate, I made an inadvertent error on the financial disclosure form,” Guinta said in a statement Tuesday.

His campaign finance disclosure forms at the time listed his cash in savings accounts of up to $80,000.

“When brought to my attention, I voluntarily amended this form which led to the issue that has now been resolved,” Guinta said. When asked about the money in 2010, Guinta denied that he’d received a loan from someone else and said the omission of the large bank account was “an inadvertent oversight.”

“I have long had an equitable interest in this account which was set up with my family; and, for nearly two decades, have made deposits — which including interest — exceed the amount I loaned the campaign. I decided to reach an agreement with the FEC so that I can end the distractions and focus on serving hard-working Granite Staters,” Guinta’s statement said.

His critics, who long maintained that the money was an illegal loan from another person, were not pacified by the settlement.

“For nearly five years, Frank Guinta has repeatedly lied to the people of New Hampshire about funneling hundreds of thousands of dollars in illegal contributions to his campaign,” New Hampshire Democratic Party Chairman Ray Buckley said in a statement. “The FEC has now definitively confirmed that Guinta not only violated campaign finance laws, but also that he deliberately violated the public’s trust.”

tbuckland@unionleader.com

READ the FEC conciliation agreement:

www.scribd.com/doc/265202034/Frank-Guinta-FEC-Concilliation-Agreement

----------

"FEC says Guinta took illegal money from parents"
By Holly Ramer, Associated Press, May 13, 2015

U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta illegally accepted more than $300,000 in campaign donations from his parents in 2009 and 2010, the Federal Election Commission has concluded after a nearly five-year investigation.

Questions over Guinta’s finances arose in 2010, the year the Republican former mayor of Manchester was first elected to Congress. He was defeated by Democrat Carol Shea-Porter in 2012, but reclaimed the seat in November.

During his first campaign, Guinta reported loaning himself $355,000 and amended a disclosure form to add a previously unreported bank account worth up to $500,000. Both his rivals in the Republican primary and Shea-Porter questioned how he could have saved that much given that his chief income for most of the previous decade was his mayoral salary and called on him to show records proving the account’s earlier existence.

Over the years, Guinta flatly denied the money came from his parents or that it was an illegal campaign donation. Instead, he said and his wife saved it working in the private sector before he was elected mayor in 2005.

“I’m proud of the fact that we were both successful,” Guinta said during a debate. “I’m standing on principle. I don’t think it’s necessary to actually open up my bank statements to every single person, and if you don’t like that answer, that is your prerogative.”

But in an agreement reached last week, the FEC concluded that the money came from his parents’ bank accounts. It found that Guinta received nine checks signed by his mother and one signed by his father totaling $381,000 in 2009 and 2010 and that he used money from his parents’ accounts to make the campaign loans.

Guinta, who must repay the money plus a $15,000 fine, maintains that the money was part of a family fund and that he agreed to the settlement to “end the distractions.”

“In 2010, I loaned my campaign money; and, in the course of navigating the bureaucracy of the Federal Election Commission (FEC) as a first time candidate, I made an inadvertent error on the financial disclosure form. When brought to my attention, I voluntarily amended this form which led to the issue that has now been resolved. I have long had an equitable interest in this account which was set up with my family; and, for nearly two decades, have made deposits – which including interest – exceed the amount I loaned the campaign,” he said in a statement yesterday.

The agreement, first reported by WMUR-TV, ends an investigation requested by the New Hampshire Democratic Party a month after the 2010 election. Party Chairman Ray Buckley said Guinta not only violated campaign finance laws but deliberately violated the public’s trust.

“This is truly conduct unbefitting of a United States Congressman,” he said.

----------

"N.H. congressman illegally accepted money from parents, FEC says"
By Holly Ramer, Associated Press, MAY 13, 2015

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The Federal Election Commission says U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta illegally accepted more than $300,000 in campaign donations from his parents in 2010.

Questions over Guinta’s finances arose in 2010, the year the Republican was first elected to Congress. He was defeated in 2012, but reclaimed the seat in November.

Over the years, Guinta flatly denied the money came from his parents and said he and his wife saved it working in the private sector. But in an agreement reached this week, the FEC says the money came from his parents’ bank accounts.

Guinta, who must repay the money plus a $15,000 fine, says he had an equitable interest in the accounts and that he agreed to the settlement to ‘‘end the distractions.’’

The agreement was first reported by WMUR-TV.

----------

"New Hampshire Republicans Call on Frank Guinta to Serve His Party by Resigning"
By Jess Bidgood and Katharine Q. Seelye, New York Times, May 19, 2015

CONCORD, N.H. — It is hard enough, in the best of times, for either party to hold the congressional seat in New Hampshire’s First District. In recent years, it has flipped back and forth between Republicans and Democrats like a Ping-Pong ball.

But since Representative Frank Guinta, a Republican, recently settled a 2010 campaign finance violation, his biggest problem has not been the Democrats hungrily eyeing his seat in 2016; it has been top elected officials of his own party. Many of them want him out, which would help them avoid a distracting mess as Republican presidential contenders descend on the state and as the party prepares for what could be a bruising Senate battle next year.

Calls from party officials for his resignation began piling up Monday, including one from Senator Kelly Ayotte, the state’s top-ranking Republican. An erstwhile supporter of Mr. Guinta, Senator Ayotte has been mentioned as a possible vice-presidential candidate in 2016.

The state legislature’s Republican leaders joined in. So did the reliably conservative editorial page of The New Hampshire Union Leader.

“His disgraceful behavior has shattered the trust placed in him by the people of New Hampshire,” wrote The Union Leader, which had endorsed Mr. Guinta in the past. “The only action he can take now to salvage any sliver of a good name for himself is resignation.”

It was a comparatively loquacious follow-up to the paper’s curt editorial on Friday, signed by its publisher, Joseph W. McQuaid. That salvo read in its entirety: “Frank Guinta is a damned liar.”

On Monday night, Jennifer Horn, the state Republican chairwoman, who had called the situation “serious and extremely troubling,” asked Mr. Guinta, 44, to explain himself at a closed-door meeting of the party’s executive committee. Despite the pressure from Republican office holders, the committee said afterward that it would not press him to resign.

“The congressman has acknowledged he made mistakes, takes responsibility for them and is taking all actions required by the F.E.C.,” the committee said in a statement, referring to the Federal Election Commission.

The committee added that it would not ask Mr. Guinta to resign “unless further information comes to light” and said it planned no further action.

In a statement on Tuesday, Mr. Guinta said he would remain in his seat, citing the committee’s decision. "I am humbled by their continued support and confidence in my ability to represent the constituents of the First Congressional District of New Hampshire," he said. Mr. Guinta’s problems stem from a series of loans, totaling $355,000, that he made to his campaign committee during his uphill primary battle between June 2009 and September 2010. He has maintained that the money was his own. But in a settlement agreement with the election commission finalized earlier this month, he admitted that the money had come from an account that bore his parents’ names — making it an excessive and illegal campaign donation. Mr. Guinta’s campaign is to pay a fine of $15,000 because it did not properly disclose the source of that money.

Mr. Guinta says the funds were his own but were held in a family account established when he was a minor. He said he had contributed to the account over the years. He told WMUR-TV: “So did my mom write the check? Absolutely. Was this her money? No.”

Many of the state’s top elected Republicans have not seem convinced.

Senator Ayotte, who is expected to face a tough re-election battle next year, has said she told Mr. Guinta by phone that he should step down. “This is a decision he needs to make, but if I were in his position, that’s what I would do,” she told WMUR.

Chuck Morse, president of the State Senate, and Shawn Jasper, speaker of the House, both Republicans, also called for his resignation. In an interview on Tuesday, the Senate majority leader, Jeb Bradley, said he believed Mr. Guinta should consider stepping down.

“I think he’s on a really small island,” Mr. Bradley said. “I think the charges are serious and disturbing and at some point he needs to think about doing what’s better for New Hampshire than himself.”

Dante Scala, a political scientist at the University of New Hampshire, said the executive committee’s neutrality on the question of Mr. Guinta’s resignation may take the wind out of his detractors’ sails, but he could nevertheless become a liability for the party.

“Certainly New Hampshire Democrats see Guinta as a thorn in the side of Kelly Ayotte and her re-election, a thorn in the side of the Republican Party in general, and they’ll keep pressing the issue going forward whenever they can,” Mr. Scala said.

And any Republican presidential candidates who have supported Mr. Guinta in the past, like former Gov. Jeb Bush of Florida, who appeared at a fund-raiser for Mr. Guinta in March, may face questions about him when they make campaign stops in the state.

If Mr. Guinta did step down, a special election would be held to replace him. Even if he stayed, he would probably face a serious primary challenge next year.

On the Democratic side, Carol Shea-Porter, who lost the congressional seat to Mr. Guinta in 2014, is likely to get back in the ring. In their seesaw history, she lost the seat to him in 2010, then reclaimed it in 2012. In 2014, their third matchup, he won it back. The loans were an issue in every race.

Jess Bidgood reported from Concord, and Katharine Q. Seelye from Boston.

----------

"Guinta has betrayed the public trust"
eagletribune.com - Letter, May 22, 2015

To the editor:

So Congressman Frank Guinta is a serial liar and crook. He's been lying to us all along, for five long years, starting from before his 2010 election. I last heard him lie at his Dover town hall in March. The FEC actually was investigating him (as he well knew every time he lied) and has found him guilty of an illegal $355,000 campaign contribution. His parents gave him the money, as many had suspected and he always adamantly denied. The FEC has required him to repay his parents in full within a year, slapped him with a $15,000 fine, and admonished his parents for enabling his illegal campaign contribution.

In 2014, candidate Guinta smeared then-Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter to continue his cover-up and win. In the WMUR debate, he claimed the FEC had "exonerated" him, when he knew it had not. He ran a false attack ad against Shea-Porter -- remember his "100-percent cleared by House Ethics" campaign ad? -- calling her a liar, when he knew he himself was the liar. House Ethics can only investigate sitting congressmen, not candidates.

Our congressman broke the law and lied to win, possibly throwing three elections his way, smeared Shea-Porter when she told the truth, and engaged in a five-year cover-up to hide his illegal activity. I can see President Nixon shaking his head and saying, "Son, denials and cover-ups don't work.

Frank Guinta's betrayal of the public trust is disgraceful. He must apologize to his constituents and Shea-Porter by resigning.

Susan Mayer
Lee, NH

----------

"Opponent calls for federal investigation into Frank Guinta"
By James Pindell, Boston Globe Staff, MAY 26, 2015

The only announced candidate to challenge US Representative Frank Guinta in New Hampshire wants federal officials to pursue criminal charges following the Republican’s recent admission that he broke campaign finance laws.

Shawn O’Connor, a Democrat, sent a letter today to US Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Raymond Hulser, the acting chief of the Public Integrity Section of the US Department of Justice, asking for an investigation.

For five years, Guinta had claimed $355,000 in campaign loans to his 2010 congressional campaign came from a bank account in his name that he forgot to disclose. But in an agreement with the Federal Election Commission released earlier this month, Guinta acknowledged that the money came from his parents’ account — though he maintains the money is his.

Guinta won his first race in 2010 to represent the First District, which encompasses the eastern portion of New Hampshire. At the time, federal election laws limited donations to $2,400 per person, including family members. Under Guinta’s agreement with the FEC, he has agreed to pay back the loan to his parents and a $15,000 fine.

In the wake of the agreement, members of his own party, including US Senator Kelly Ayotte, have called on Guinta to resign. Guinta has no plans to resign and will seek reelection, his chief of staff said in a statement last week.

O’Connor, an entrepreneur from Bedford, said in the letter that he hoped the government “will protect the integrity of our electoral process by fully and swiftly investigating and prosecuting any violations of federal law.”

Years ago, New Hampshire’s US Attorney convened a grand jury to look into the matter, but no charges have been filed, according to sources who were called to testify at the time.

Guinta lost reelection in 2012, but he sought a comeback campaign two years later and won a second, nonconsecutive term in November.

James Pindell can be reached at James.Pindell@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @jamespindell.

----------

Candidate for Congress asks U.S. AG to investigate Rep. Frank Guinta
By Dan Tuohy - dtuohy@unionleader.com - New Hampshire Union Leader, May 27, 2015

A Democrat running for Congress has sent a letter to the U.S. Attorney General asking for an investigation into U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta’s federal campaign finance violations.

Shawn O’Connor sent the letter Monday to Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch asking for an investigation following the Federal Election Commission finding that Guinta, a Republican in the 1st District, broke the law by accepting $355,000 from his parents’ account and a failure to properly report it.

Guinta was fined $15,000 and ordered to refund $355,000 of the funds he loaned to his campaign in 2010. The money goes back to his parents’ account, though Guinta says the funds were money that he and his wife earned themselves. He maintains he had an equitable interest in the account.

O’Connor also addressed the letter to Raymond Hulser, chief of the Public Integrity Section of the U.S. Department of Justice.

“The bedrock of our democracy is the fairness of our electoral process,” he writes in the letter, a copy of which O’Connor emailed to the press. “It is highly likely that these illegal campaign contributions directly impacted the outcome of the 2010 Republican congressional Primary Election which was decided by less than 3,000 votes out of nearly 70,000 cast and may have also impacted the outcome of the 2010 General Election for this seat.”

O’Connor, a businessman from Bedford, said in an interview that he believes there is little doubt that the illegal loan to Guinta’s campaign helped sway the result of the GOP primary election in 2010, and possibly the general election that year.

“It seems like the numbers just don’t add up,” O’Connor said of Guinta’s comments after he signed the conciliation agreement with the FEC about “excessive contributions” last month.In an interview with the New Hampshire Union Leader on May 15, Guinta said he believed that the FEC brought the case to the attention of the U.S. Department of Justice. It was then revealed for the first time that the case was presented to a federal grand jury back in 2010, though Guinta did not personally testify.

Guinta’s attorney, Cleta Mitchell, further explained in an interview with the Union Leader on May 16 that they worked with the U.S. attorney and provided information and, “at the end of the day they decided there was no violation.”

The Union Leader report includes a comment from acting U.S. Attorney Donald Feith. Feith said he could not comment specifically about Guinta’s case, but he said a new grand jury investigation could be launched if evidence warrants it.

----------


"Shea-Porter breaks silence, calls on Guinta to resign: In email to supporters, former congresswoman says she's 'ready to win this seat back'"
By John DiStaso, WMUR, May 28, 2015

MANCHESTER, N.H —Former Rep. Carol Shea-Porter has broken her silence on the campaign finance troubles surrounding her three-time Republican foe, Rep. Frank Guinta, and has joined top Republicans and others who are calling on him to resign his office.

In an email to supporters on Thursday afternoon, obtained by WMUR.com, Shea-Porter wrote:

“Mr. Guinta has lied for five years about even being under investigation by the FEC. He deliberately deceived New Hampshire voters a week before the election last November when he ran an ad calling me a liar for saying he was under investigation.

"He is continuing to lie even now by saying that the FEC fined him for a reporting error, when it very clearly states that it was for illegal contributions AND they also sent a letter of warning to his donors who exceeded the legal limit when they gave him the money.”

She continued, “Guinta broke the law, used illegal funds in his campaign, and proceeded to lie and cheat for five years.”

“This is not a partisan issue,” Shea-Porter wrote. “It's a matter of integrity, honesty and trust. I agree with Republican United States Senator Ayotte, the Republican leaders of the New Hampshire House and New Hampshire Senate, and others that Guinta must resign now.”

She also wrote that she is "ready to win this seat back and restore honesty, integrity, and competence to the NH-01 seat."

Reached on Thursday afternoon, Shea-Porter briefly commented on her future political plans.

"I believe that after hearing from a very bipartisan group, it's time for Frank Guinta to step down. And I plan to run for the seat if and when he steps down."

She declined to comment further, choosing to let her email speak for itself. The email appears in its entirety at the end of this report. Shea-Porter lost to Guinta in 2010, defeated him in 2012 and lost to him in 2014.

A spokesman for Guinta declined to comment on Shea-Porter's email on Thursday evening.

State Republican Party Chair Jennifer Horn said, ""Voters have twice removed Congresswoman Shea-Porter from office because of her blind support for President Obama's failed policies. The congresswoman is free to run again if she would like to experience the embarrassment of being rejected for a third time."

Shea-Porter's email is her first public statement on the Guinta controversy since WMUR9 first reported on it on May 12.

Guinta earlier this month signed a conciliation agreement with the Federal Election Commission, which found that he received excessive campaign contributions, in violation of federal election law, from his parents. Guinta in 2010 received $381,000 in 10 checks – nine written by his mother and one by his father. He loaned $355,000 of it to his campaign.

Election law limited contributions from individuals to $2,400 per election in 2010.

The FEC ordered Guinta to return the $355,000 within a year and fined him $15,000. He insisted that the money he received from the account was actually his, and was deposited in what he called a “family account.” He has insisted that the $355,000 was “my money.”

He said he signed the agreement with the FEC to put the issue behind him.

Five top state Republicans – Sen. Kelly Ayotte, New Hampshire House Speaker Shawn Jasper, state Senate President Chuck Morse and Executive Councilor Chris Sununu – have called on fellow Republican Guinta to resign.

Democratic Rep. Ann Kuster is the lone top Democratic elected official to have called for Guinta’s resignation, although Sen. Jeanne Shaheen and Gov. Maggie Hassan have publicly questioned his ability to do his job on Capitol Hill in the wake of the findings by the FEC.

The state Republican Party executive committee refused to consider calling on Guinta to resign at a meeting earlier this month.

Guinta has refused to step down.

As the New Hampshire Primary Source column reported on Thursday, about 100 supporters of Guinta allowed their names to be used in a full page ad backing Guinta in the New Hampshire Union Leader. The ad stated, “We support Congressman Frank Guinta,” and included a Twitter hashtag, “#standwithGuinta.”

Guinta for five years has insisted that the money in question was not his parents’ and he has stood by that assertion even while having his attorney sign the conciliation agreement.

The full text of Shea-Porter’s email follows:

Dear Friend:

After five long years, the FEC has finally ruled that Congressman Frank Guinta really did break the law, that he illegally funded his 2010 campaign when he took $355,000 in illegal contributions to win his primary and then use against me in attack ads in the general election.

The conservative Union Leader wrote, and we quote the editorial in its entirety, "Frank Guinta is a damned liar." In a second editorial, they said, "His disgraceful behavior has shattered the trust placed in him by the people of New Hampshire. The only action he can take now to salvage any sliver of a good name for himself is resignation. He should do it immediately." Five other newspapers have also called for his resignation, but at this moment, Frank Guinta not only refuses, he actually says he will run again.

As for punishment, the FEC is forcing Congressman Guinta to repay the $355,000 in illegal contributions, and has also hit him with a $15,000 penalty. Sadly, his donors will be the ones actually paying for his illegal actions.

Mr. Guinta has lied for five years about even being under investigation by the FEC. He deliberately deceived NH voters a week before the election last November when he ran an ad calling me a liar for saying he was under investigation. (She included a link to the ad in her email.)

"He is continuing to lie even now by saying that the FEC fined him for a reporting error, when it very clearly states that it was for illegal contributions AND they also sent a letter of warning to his donors who exceeded the legal limit when they gave him the money.

Guinta broke the law, used illegal funds in his campaign, and proceeded to lie and cheat for five years.

This is not a partisan issue -- it's a matter of integrity, honesty and trust. I agree with Republican United States Senator Ayotte, the Republican leaders of the New Hampshire House and New Hampshire Senate, and others that Guinta must resign now.

My family goes back to General John Stark, who gave NH its slogan, "Live Free or Die." I love my state and its people, and I am grateful for the education and the degrees I received from our great University of New Hampshire. I stand ready to win this seat back and restore honesty, integrity, and competence to the NH-01 seat.

Best Wishes,

Carol

----------

"In FEC report, Rep. Guinta's mom says no 'family pot' of money"
By Dan Tuohy, New Hampshire Union Leader, June 2, 2015

Congressman Frank Guinta’s mother didn’t believe her son had an "equitable interest" in a bank account from which she loaned him $355,000 in 2010, according to documents released by the Federal Election Commission Tuesday.

Investigative files released from Guinta’s case, in which he was found to have broken the law by accepting excessive contributions and misreporting them, show his mother’s interpretation is at odds with what he told federal investigators.

Virginia Guinta "confirmed her understanding that the loans would be repaid," according to FEC files posted online Tuesday.

Guinta contends the money was his, and the product of working hard and making sound investments.

Guinta had no legal title, nor access, to the funds in his parents’ account, and he did not pay any income taxes or dividends and interest earned from the account, according to the FEC.

Guinta said he had a "specific commitment and pledge: from his parents that he could have access to the funds for his personal use.

His parents, Richard and Virginia Guinta, issued Guinta 10 checks totaling $381,000 between June 2009 and September 2010. One nine of those checks, totaling $359,000, Mrs. Guinta wrote “loan” on the memo line.

Mrs. Guinta told investigators that she and her husband “decided $1 million of wealth would be available to each of their three children,” according to an FEC general counsel report dated Feb. 11, 2014.

The FEC concluded that Mrs. Guinta’s description of the basis for providing funds were at odds with the “family pot” concept described by Guinta.

“She stated that she and her husband ‘decided $1 million of wealth would be available to each of their three children,’” the General Counsel reported in 2014. “Virginia Guinta did not characterize the funds as owned by Rep. Guinta or as having been obtained and maintained in her bank accounts because of any agreement with Rep. Guinta. Thus, when Rep. Guinta sought funds for his federal campaign, Virginia Guinta “deducted this amount from his $1 million allotment.”

Guinta’s sister, Christine Guinta Raymond, told the FEC “that she was unaware such a family pot existed, let alone that she or either of her brothers enjoyed a legal or equitable right to access those funds.”

The FEC investigators said no evidence of the alleged "specific commitment and pledge" agreement that Guinta could draw from his parents' account for personal use.

The FEC said it appeared at odds with Guinta’s earlier representations that the funds were in multiple accounts, and that he earned the money and saved it himself.

His parents wrote him other checks between 2001 and 2010, totaling at least $57,050 to pay for a variety of Guinta’s personal expenses, “such as his mayor campaign, his credit card bills, and his mortgages on two properties,” according to the FEC report.

Guinta, a Republican two-term Congressman and former mayor, said last month that he signed the conciliation agreement with the FEC to settle the case and get it behind him. Since the agreement came to light, five newspapers have called on Guinta to resign. U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-NH, the top elected Republican in New Hampshire, also urged Guinta to resign.

Controversy around the "mystery bank account" has ensued since 2010, when Guinta defeated Democratic U.S. Rep. Carol Shea-Porter to win his first term representing New Hampshire's 1st District. In that election year, candidates in the GOP primary first raised questions about the source of the funds. Shea-Porter challenged Guinta in 2012, and won. Guinta then defeated Shea-Porter in 2014.

In a debate last year, Shea-Porter said Guinta was under investigation by the FEC, to which Guinta complained that Shea-Porter was lying about his record. He responded that he had been cleared by the FEC.

Last month, when speaking about the FEC investigation that had been continuing all along, Guinta said that he misspoke. He said he was referring to an inquiry by the House Ethics Committee.

After the FEC agreement on the finance violations, Shea-Porter emailed her supporters and called on Guinta to resign. She signaled, for the first time, that she could again be a candidate for the 1st District.

----------

Integrity or Guinta? The state GOP's call
The NH Union Leader, Editorial, June 4, 2015

No prisoner held at Guantanamo Bay was ever tortured as brutally as Frank Guinta’s mangled explanations for his illegal 2010 congressional campaign loans have been. Were there an American Civil Liberties Union for language, it would have no choice but to file a complaint against Guinta for cruelty to the English language and to logic and reason.

For the New Hampshire Republican Party, there also remains no choice. It must call for Guinta’s resignation and sever its ties. Documents released Tuesday by the Federal Election Commission (FEC) show unmistakably that Guinta asked for and received illegal campaign contributions from his parents for the purpose of stealing a Republican primary and a general election in 2010, then repeatedly lied to the people of New Hampshire to cover it up.

The FEC’s February, 2014, Second General Counsel Report on Guinta’s questioned $355,000 in campaign loans demolishes Guinta’s preposterous claims about the money’s origin. It reveals, among other truths:

• Despite his repeated claims to the contrary, Guinta provided no documentation backing up his contention that his parents’ bank account, from which the $355,000 came, had been seeded with $100,000 in his own money.

• Guinta’s own sister and mother contradicted his assertion that the parents’ bank account was a “family pot” to which all children had an ownership stake. His mother characterized the money as loans from Guinta’s parents to him. She even wrote “loan” on the subject line of nine checks she wrote to him.

• The $355,000 belonged unquestionably — provably — to Guinta’s parents, not to him. As the report put it, “Contributions to the Committee Were Not Rep. Guinta’s Personal Funds.”

To cover up the source of his illegal campaign money, Guinta lied to everyone. First, he lied to the people of New Hampshire. He told this newspaper in a 2010 interview that the money came from multiple personal bank accounts held by him. He let this lie stand while he told the FEC an entirely different lie, that the money came from deposits he made into a family bank account to which he had a legal right of access. While the FEC investigation was ongoing, he told voters that it had ended and he had been cleared.

Guinta’s growing pile of fabrications calls to mind the succinct title of writer Christopher Hitchens’ damning 1999 book on Bill Clinton, “No one left to lie to.” From his constituents to federal investigators, Guinta has lied to everyone.

With Tuesday’s FEC releases, Guinta should have run out of people gullible enough to believe his stories. The question is whether his party will defend the indefensible out of misguided sense of loyalty to one of their own. We know what the answer should be. New Hampshire Republican leaders know it too.

The party cannot stand by a politician who has revealed himself to be wholly unworthy of the public trust. Political parties are supposed to stand for ideals, not merely for tribal connections. The state GOP platform states that Republicans pledge “to lead with integrity, character and compassion.” Guinta has not. The party can either lead with integrity or it can stand by Frank Guinta. It cannot do both.

----------

"Have you no sense of decency, Congressman Guinta?"
SeacoastOnline.com - Letters, June 4, 2015

June 3 — To the Editor:

It’s now even MORE official. New Hampshire voters not only elected a bald-faced liar when they elected Congressman Frank Guinta. They elected a man who is not above lying to and about his financial relationship with his mother.

This week, the Federal Election Commission (FEC) FINALLY, after five years, publicly released the report of their findings in the illegal political campaign contributions Guinta took from his family and characterized them as his. The FEC has now made public the fact that none of the $381,000.00 Guinta used to beat his Republican primary opponents and Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter in the 2010 general election was actually his money, despite his unashamed lies to the public (all of us) and the news media these past five years at numerous public political appearances.

This brought to my mind another political transgression by then US Senator Joseph McCarthy in the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. In the spring of 1954, McCarthy targeted the U.S. Army, charging lax security at a top-secret army facility. Boston attorney, Joseph Welch was hired to defend the Army.

At a publicly televised hearing on June 9, 1954, McCarthy characterized one of Welch's attorneys as having ties to a Communist organization. Welch responded with the immortal lines that ultimately ended McCarthy's career: "Until this moment, Senator, I think I never really gauged your cruelty or your recklessness." When McCarthy tried to continue attacking, Welch sternly interrupted, "Let us not assassinate this lad further, senator. You have done enough. Have you no sense of decency?"

That was the end of Senator McCarthy’s political career. Congressman Guinta, your turn !

Herb Moyer
Exeter, NH

----------

"Game’s over, Guinta"
For the Concord Monitor, Letters, June 6, 2015

This May, the Federal Election Commission found Congressman Frank Guinta guilty of breaking the law by accepting a $335,000 campaign contribution from his parents. The maximum allowable contribution is $2,400.

Our congressman has spent five years trying to cover this up, fabricating lie after lie. When Carol Shea-Porter raised the issue of the federal investigation during the last WMUR candidates debate, he accused her of lying. Guinta repeatedly denied that he was under investigation by the FEC; he also blasted Shea-Porter during the last week of the campaign, repeatedly airing a political ad accusing her of lying and assaulting his character.

Lo and behold, we find out she was telling the truth and Guinta was lying. He brazenly lied his way to Washington. Though Guinta recently signed an agreement with the FEC explicitly admitting guilt, he continues to deny any wrongdoing. Most recently he claims the money was in a “shared” account (with his parents) – though he did not have direct access to it, nor did he pay taxes on it.

This week the FEC released its findings.

While Guinta insists that the money in the account was his, his mother disagrees. She states that the money belonged to her and her husband; it was a loan, and they expected their son to pay it back (which he hasn’t). Five newspapers and the top elected Republican in our state, Kelly Ayotte, have all called for Guinta to resign. Guinta must stop abusing the public trust. He must resign now.

Beth Olshansky
Durham, NH

----------

"Watchdog group files complaint against Guinta over finances"
By Holly Ramer - Associated Press - June 16, 2015

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) - A government watchdog group on Tuesday asked the Office of Congressional Ethics to investigate whether Republican U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta violated U.S. House rules or federal law.

The complaint filed by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington follows recent action by the Federal Elections Commission, which found that Guinta accepted $355,000 in illegal campaign donations from his parents for his 2010 campaign. Guinta agreed to repay the money plus a $15,000 fine, but he insists the money belonged to him because for years he contributed to and managed a family pot of money.

The Office of Congressional Ethics is an outside panel that reviews ethics complaints against House members. According to the new complaint, Guinta amended his financial disclosure report to the House Ethics Committee in 2010 to add the family pot bank account but failed to disclose it in six subsequent filings.

“Representative Guinta wants to have his cake and eat it, too,” said the watchdog group’s director, Noah Bookbinder. “When the FEC is investigating whether he received an illegal contribution, he insists the money is his. When it comes time to report that money to the Ethics Committee, he says he doesn’t have to report those funds because they aren’t in his name. Those claims can’t both be right.”

Guinta’s chief of staff, Jay Ruais, dismissed Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington as a left-wing group funded by liberal financier George Soros.

“This is a well-known partisan organization led and funded by individuals whose mission is to attack, demean and destroy Republicans for political purposes,” he said. “Congressman Guinta will continue working on behalf of New Hampshire’s First Congressional District.”

In documents filed with the FEC, Guinta’s lawyer argued that House rules require candidates to disclose only accounts held by the candidate and that his initial decision not to disclose it and his amended form were “reasonable and good faith attempts to comply with the form’s imperfect and ambiguous instructions.”

Guinta was first elected to the state’s 1st Congressional District seat in 2010. He was defeated by Democrat Carol Shea-Porter in 2012 but regained the seat in November.

----------

"Guinta finance filing reports only 16 non-PAC donations"
By Dan Tuohy, New Hampshire Union Leader, July 17, 2015

U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta received only $11,679 in contributions from 16 individuals in his latest quarterly financial report, a sign his support is eroding after a campaign finance scandal. (Editorial, Page A6.)

The filing also shows the embattled congressman refunding $7,000 to political action committees with ties to House Speaker John Boehner.

Guinta returned $2,000 to “Friends of John Boehner,” and $5,000 to The Freedom Project, a Boehner-led PAC that helps Republicans running for Congress.

Contributions for the period ending June 30 totaled $113,679.61, with $102,000 coming from PACs.

In May, the Federal Election Commission concluded that Guinta broke federal election finance laws by accepting $355,000 in donations from his parents to fund his first congressional campaign in 2010, and failing to report the source of the money.

The FEC fined Guinta $15,000, which he paid.

He was ordered to refund his parents’ private account the $355,000 within 12 months.

The quarterly report released upon the July 15 deadline shows Guinta has yet to refund the loans, and that his cash on hand as of June 30 would not even cover that amount.

Guinta continues to claim that he had an equitable interest in his parents’ account, which they solely control, and that the $355,000 was money he earned himself. The FEC rejected his “family pot” of money defense.

The quarterly report released this week cites four loans for a combined $355,000, referring to the loan source as Guinta’s “personal funds.”

Under debts, the report cites the $355,000 debt owed to the “Guinta Family Fund.”

Before the quarterly contribution deadline June 30, Guinta sent out at least three fundraising emails.

He has said he intends to run for re-election in 2016.

Top elected Republicans in New Hampshire, including U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte, have called on Guinta to resign. Every major newspaper in the state has called for the same.

State GOP Chairman Jennifer Horn also sent a letter to the party’s executive committee saying that she had lost trust in Guinta and no longer believed him.

Over nearly five years, Guinta has given different stories on the source of the $355,000, which was pumped into his campaign at a critical point in the 2010 GOP primary, which he narrowly won.

Republicans first raised the red flag on the money from a “mystery bank account,” which Guinta did not previously disclose.

He said it was an oversight, and that it was money he and his wife earned.

At one point, Guinta told the Union Leader the money was from accounts he established himself in the 1990s. After the FEC concluded Guinta broke the law by accepting the excessive contributions — when a person, even a family member, was limited to $2,400 per primary and general election in 2010 — Guinta’s defense became that the money was in his parents’ account, and that he actively managed the money, beginning when he was a minor.

The FEC investigation revealed that his mother had written him checks with “loan” in the subject line. Guinta’s parents also contributed heavily to his campaigns for mayor of Manchester, where he served from 2006-2010.

The Union Leader asked Guinta in 2010 if the money was in any way connected to his parents.

“To answer that directly,” he replied, “the answer is no.”

dtuohy@unionleader.com

----------

"Whistleblower: Guinta 'bought the election'"
By Dan Tuohy, New Hampshire Union Leader, July 20, 2015

The man who first blew the whistle on U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta’s illegal campaign donations says Guinta cheated the system and “bought the election.”

Christopher Wolfe, after reviewing Guinta’s financial disclosures in the summer of 2010, said the candidate had glaring math problems.

“Two plus two wasn’t equaling four,” he says. “And it certainly doesn’t equal five.”

Wolfe, the first to lodge a complaint with the Federal Election Commission against Guinta for taking illegal campaign donations, said Guinta pumping $355,000 into his 2010 campaign from a previously undisclosed account raised several red flags.

“As a business person, you know how hard it is to earn a living, pay your staff and create capital,” said Wolfe, in his first published interview after the FEC concluded in May that Guinta broke the law. “Frank hadn’t held any position or formed any venture that would yield a windfall of that size. It didn’t add up and it begged investigation.”

Democrats continue to blast Guinta for the illegal donations, and for lying about the source of the funds, but Republicans were first to wave those red flags during the summer of 2010.

Wolfe, a businessman and a former Derry GOP leader, was supporting Republican congressional hopeful Bob Bestani in the 1st District GOP primary that year.

Guinta won the primary, with Sean Mahoney and Rich Ashooh coming within 3,000 votes of him. Guinta then defeated Democrat Carol Shea-Porter. The GOP had a great group of candidates that year, Wolfe said in interviews by phone and email.

“The primary is our opportunity to vet these candidates and choose the best person to represent us,” he noted. “Three of those candidates followed the rules, one broke them by bringing in undisclosed money, that money bought the election. Good people lost because of this deception. New Hampshire does not deserve this.”

Failure to disclose

The FEC concluded Guinta broke federal election finance laws by accepting $355,000 in illegal donations and failing to disclose the source donations: his parents’ private account. Guinta has given various stories on the origin of the money. The FEC determined the money came from his parents’ account, which they solely controlled, and that the checks to Guinta had “loan” written in the subject line. Guinta contends the money was his, that he had an equitable interest in his parents’ account — claims the FEC rejected.

Guinta’s defense to the FEC was that he managed a “family pot” of money, and that he had contributed money into his parents’ account for years. Guinta has refused to make documents available for public inspection that might show he actually contributed money into the account. He has also ignored requests to produce tax returns.

Media reports back in 2010 raised the possibility that the $355,000 came from profits Guinta’s parents realized in selling their home in New Jersey. Guinta had said that his parents had nothing to do with the funds.

FEC investigative files in the case, which were made public in early June, included an interview with his mother, Virginia Guinta, saying she and her husband decided that $1 million would be set aside for their three children.

“Virginia Guinta did not characterize the funds as owned by Rep. Guinta or as having been obtained and maintained in her bank accounts because of any agreement with Rep. Guinta,” according to the FEC report. “Thus, when Rep. Guinta sought funds for his federal campaign, Virginia Guinta ‘deducted this amount from his $1 million allotment.’”

FEC rules in 2010 allowed a person to donate up to $2,400 per primary or general election cycle.

“Guinta’s undisclosed money came from a third party (albeit his parents) where the source could not be clear,” Wolfe noted in an email. “Even though we suspect it came from the sale of the house on Barnegat Bay, NJ, it was still not 100 percent certain. That leaves open the chance of corruption, which the FEC rules are rigorously established to prevent.”

Wolfe’s analysis of Guinta’s financial status, as well as pro forma income statement attached to his FEC complaint, still holds up five years later.

“The timing and the size of the loans draw into question where the money is coming from,” Wolfe writes in the original complaint Aug. 8, 2010. At that point, the query was about $245,000 in loans to Guinta’s candidate committee.

“My own independent analysis of the public data available regarding Mr. Guinta’s personal financial situation indicates, as of this writing, that this year his family has lost $25,000 in cash assets alone,” Wolfe wrote. “Regarding the balance sheet, this is quite troubling. Effectively at the Minimum, when one factors in the “Loans” to the campaign, Mr. Guinta appears to have a negative net worth of approximately $160,000 at the minimum level and negative $34,000 at the Hi-Probability level. This calculation is based on YE 2009 assets and does not include the estimated $25,000 cash loss to date.”

When Guinta filed an updated asset disclosure form with the House Ethics Committee in August 2010, a form that included additional previously unreported assets, Wolfe submitted an addendum to his original complaint and raised additional questions.

Wolfe’s questions, verbatim via the complaint:

• Why in recent, attached, news reports would the campaign need at least three different explanations for where the monies for the loans originated?

• Why has the candidate not amended his 2009 Form B filing to show that he had this account before becoming a candidate for office?

• Why would someone sophisticated enough to invest in a dozen investment accounts leave uninsured cash in a bank account of a financial institution that needed a bailout by the federal government to stay afloat?

• And of course the simplest question, how does someone forget to report a bank account that contains half of his entire net worth?

Asked in the phone interview if he felt justified or gratified with the FEC findings, Wolfe paused to reflect. He said he is glad to see the investigation come to some kind of disclosure.

“We have to hold people accountable,” he replied.

dtuohy@unionleader.com

----------