Find out how Cooch took $55,000 from the disgraced "U.S. Navy Veterans Association," in apparent exchange for his promise to get the Virginia Office of Consumer Affairs (which had "notified Thompson's group that it no longer qualified for an exemption from state registration requirements") off the group's back. Can we say "pay-to-play?" Find out more.
A very interesting exchange begins at 2:35 of this video. Chuck Todd asks Ken Cuccinelli about the "appropriateness of the chief law enforcement officer of the state of Virginia in the middle of [the health care lawsuit]..simultaneously raising money and doing a political argument, basically raising a political profile at the same time." After blathering about federal "overexercise of power," Chuck Todd jumps in and says "nobody's questioning that...I'm just talking about the politics...about raising money off of your lawsuit." Cooch's response:
Right, when I was running the campaign, I was raising money to run the campaign. The day after the election, I immediately start running the next election. I'm not a fool, I know I'm a target and I'm becoming a bigger target. So, we are attempting to defend ourselves, and at the same time the petition is an attempt to build public support...
In other words, as much as Cooch actually believes in the causes he's fighting for, he's also a politician who is raising money and list building so he can run for Governor of Virginia in 2013. At least he's honest about it -- when pressed by a good reporter asking tough questions, anyway.
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