Buttigieg Campaign Sees Who Donations Are From, Returns Them

2 of Brett Kavanaugh's lawyers had donated thousands
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 27, 2019 3:33 PM CST
Buttigieg Campaign Sees Who Donations Are From, Returns Them
Democratic presidential candidate South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg speaks during a town hall meeting, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2019, in Denison, Iowa.   (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

Pete Buttigieg’s campaign received $7,200 from Alexandra Walsh and $2,800 from Beth Wilkinson, but that money has since been returned to the top DC law partners after the donations were revealed. Why? Because they are part of Wilkinson Walsh Eskovitz, the Washington law firm that represented Brett Kavanaugh during his confirmation hearing to be a Supreme Court justice. The Guardian brought the donations to the campaign's attention, and the campaign said in a statement that the money would be returned, and should not have been accepted in the first place: "With nearly 700,000 donors, a contribution we would otherwise refuse sometimes gets through. We believe the women who have courageously spoken out about Brett Kavanaugh’s assault and misconduct, and we thank the Guardian for bringing this contribution to our attention."

Walsh's contribution exceeded limits, so $3,150 had already been returned. As the Guardian puts it, Walsh and Wilkinson—who frequently donate to Democratic candidates and causes—"led the charge defending Kavanaugh" from Christine Blasey Ford's sexual assault accusation and the other claims that later surfaced. Wilkinson, for example, questioned why accusers hadn't reported the alleged assaults to police, and Walsh was the lawyer who said, in reference to Kavanaugh's infamous "Renate Alumnus" yearbook boast, that Kavanaugh had simply shared a "brief kiss goodnight" with Renate Schroeder Dolphin, a high school friend he "admired ... very much." Dolphin later denied Walsh's kiss claim. (A billionaire's wife donated to Bernie Sanders, but not for long.)

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