West forms federal ‘Guardian Leadership PAC’

By George Bennet, Palm Beach Post

He’s already a platinum YouTube star, Internet traffic generator and cable TV mainstay. Now freshman U.S. Rep. Allen West, R-Plantation, has formed a federal “leadership PAC” that could come in handy if he wants to lift his national profile any higher.

Leadership PACs allow members of Congress – including the three other members of Palm Beach County’s congressional delegation – to raise money at up to $5,000 a pop and distribute contributions to other candidates.

The committees are often used by those with leadership ambitions to curry favor with colleagues. On his way to becoming House speaker, Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, used his PAC to hand out $4 million to GOP candidates over the last four election cycles.

The PACs are also useful for officials eyeing higher office. Rookie Illinois Sen. Barack Obama formed his Hopefund PAC a few weeks after taking office in 2005. By the time the 2006 elections were over, Obama’s PAC had raised and spent more than $3.7 million – doling out more than $700,000 to Democratic candidates and party organs around the nation, spending about $200,000 on travel and more than $1 million to build a fund-raising network that would help him win the presidency two years later.

Most leadership PACs operate on a much smaller scale. U.S. Rep. Alcee Hastings, D-Miramar, raised $69,000 and spent about $45,000 through his PAC over four years. U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Tequesta, raised and spent less than $20,000 with his PAC for the 2010 elections.

U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Boca Raton, formed Together Electing Democrats PAC (TEDPAC) shortly after winning a special election last year and spent about $32,000 on 2010 races.

To read more, visit:  http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/state/west-forms-federal-leadership-pac-1318916.html

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