| As Frank Phillips reported today, and as we've already discussed, an outfit called "Killer Coke" doesn't think much of Deval Patrick, and doesn't want him to be elected Governor of Massachusetts.
So who is "Killer Coke," also known as the "Campaign to Stop Killer Coke," anyway?
Here's what a little digging turns up. It's got a 718 (New York City/Brooklyn) phone number, and its mailing address is a PO Box in the 10276 zip code (Cooper Station, at the corner of E. 11th St. and 4th Ave. in southern Manhattan). Its email is an unimposing "stopkillercoke@aol.com."
Despite its ".org" URL, neither "Killer Coke" nor the "Campaign to Stop Killer Coke" is registered with the IRS as any sort of 501(c) non-profit organization. Nor does the IRS or the FEC have any record of its being registered as a PAC, 527, or other political advocacy organization. For that reason, no doubt, the "Campaign to Stop Killer Coke" donation page nowhere indicates either that donations are tax-deductible, or that they aren't (as is required for political fundraising by organizations registered with the IRS).
In fact, the "Campaign to Stop Killer Coke" isn't even registered as any kind of corporate or other business entity with the New York Department of State. Really, the only thing we actually know about it is the name of its director, Ray Rogers. So if you write a check to this "Campaign," where does it go?
It appears - though we can't be sure - that it goes to Ray Rogers' private consulting business, called "Corporate Campaign, Inc." (CCI, for short). CCI, despite its ".org" URL, is a New York for-profit business corporation that specializes in advising unions on media and fundraising strategy and other aspects of their battles with private or public employers. CCI's telephone and fax numbers are identical to those listed on Killer Coke's site. Although material on the CCI site routinely speaks in the first person plural ("We are a team of experts...," "We know where to find...," etc.), there's actually no indication from the site that CCI consists of anyone but its "president and director," Ray Rogers.
So is the Campaign to Stop Killer Coke just a bank account owned by CCI, or by Ray Rogers? We have no idea, and no way to find out {UPDATE: the answer seems to be "yes," according to Bob's interview with Rogers}. There's no doubt, though, that CCI and Killer Coke are closely related (if not identical). In addition to the identical phone and fax numbers, Killer Coke is listed and linked as a "current campaign" on CCI's home page, and all of Killer Coke's web pages have two addresses - you can find every "killercoke.org" page at the alternate URL "corporatecampaign.org/killer-coke." (E.g., the "who we are" page (1 , 2 ), the "contact us" page (1 , 2 ), the "support us" page (1 , 2 ).)
All of which is to say that Killer Coke appears to be whatever Ray Rogers wants it to be. Ray Rogers obviously doesn't like Deval Patrick, so Killer Coke has inaugurated a campaign to defeat him. But at this point, one has to question Frank Phillips' description of Killer Coke as "a group of labor activists." It appears to be just Ray.
UPDATE: One last thought. If, as appears to be the case, Killer Coke has no existence independent of CCI, which is a for-profit NY corporation, does an in-state campaign against Deval Patrick's election (such as handing out leaflets) risk running afoul of Mass. campaign finance law? I'm not enough of an expert on OCPF details to know - anyone? |
