August 4, 2015
More than seven dozen individuals and corporations made contributions of $50,000 or more to two federal committees that were created to support Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s 2016 presidential bid, a Wisconsin Democracy Campaign review found.
The two committees, Unintimidated PAC, which is a Washington, D.C.-based super PAC, and Our American Revival, which is an Iowa-based 527 group, allow Walker and his supporters to raise unlimited amounts of money from any source. The committees reported late last week that they raised more than $26 million during the first six months of 2015.
Four of these wealthy contributors made contributions to Unintimidated PAC (Table 1) and Our American Revival (Table 2) of $1 million or more between January and June. Here’s a little about them and how much they gave:
- Diane Hendricks, Afton, Wis., $5 million. Hendricks is the chairman of Hendricks Holding Co., which owns ABC Supply, the nation’s largest wholesale roofing supply company started by Diane and her late husband, Ken. Hendricks is the second-richest woman in America, with a net worth estimated at $3.5 billion, according to Forbes Magazine. Hendricks is a longtime, generous contributor to Republican candidates and committees. She has contributed about $530,000 to Walker’s three campaigns for governor in 2010, 2012 and 2014;
- Joe and Marlene Ricketts, Jackson Hole, Wyo., $5 million. Joe Ricketts founded the online stock trading and investing service T.D. Ameritrade and also owns the Chicago Cubs. The couple are generous supporters of state and federal Republican candidates through a super PAC called Ending Spending Action Fund founded by Joe Ricketts, who is worth about $1.7 billion, according to Forbes Magazine. The Ricketts also contributed $115,000 directly to Walker’s 2012 and 2014 campaigns for governor;
- Richard and Elizabeth Uihlein, Lake Forest, Ill., $2.5 million. The Uihleins founded the packaging supply company U-Line Corp., and are longtime contributors to state and federal conservative causes and Republican candidates. The couple directly contributed $284,500 between January 2010 and June 2015 to Walker’s three campaigns for governor, and $200,000 to the Republican Party of Wisconsin earlier this year;
- Access Industries, New York, N.Y., $1 million. Access Industries is a holding company created in 1986 by Leonard Blavatnik that owns numerous chemical, media, and real estate companies around the world. Blavatnik is a longtime individual contributor to Democratic and Republican candidates for federal offices. Blavatnik has made no direct contributions to Walker’s federal committees or his campaigns for governor, but he did contribute $5,000 in May 2014 to Walker’s reelection opponent, Democrat Mary Burke. In addition to the $1 million contribution to Unintimidated PAC, the company also contributed $250,000 to Our American Revival.
Two other contributions to the committees to note were $150,000 by HF Securities LLC, of Brookfield, to Unintimidated PAC, and a $100,000 contribution by Robert Rasmus, the head of a Texas frac sand mining company, to Our American Revival.
HF Securities is registered to the son of Jon Hammes, who is an investor in the Milwaukee Bucks professional basketball team. HF Securities made its $150,000 donation to Unintimidated PAC on May 27, a day before Walker announced his support for a plan to provide $250 million in taxpayer dollars to finance a new arena sought by the Bucks owners.
Rasmus’s $100,000 contribution last February to Our American Revival along with two $100,000 contributions he made last September and October to the Republican Party of Wisconsin. Houston-based Hi-Crush Proppants is one of the leading frac-sand mining companies in Wisconsin.
Table 1
Top* Donors to Unintimidated PAC – The Federal Super PAC
Created to Support GOP Presidential Candidate Scott Walker
January – June 2015
| Name | City | State | Occupation | Employer | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diane Hendricks | Afton | WI | Chairman | Hendricks Holding Co. | $5,000,000 |
| Joe and Marlene Ricketts | Jackson Hole | WY | Founder/ Retired | TD Ameritrade/ Retired | $5,000,000 |
| Richard and Elizabeth Uihlein | Lake Forest | IL | Owners | Uline Corp. | $2,500,000 |
| Access Industries, Inc. | New York | NY | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | $1,000,000 |
| Bernard Marcus | Atlanta | GA | Retired Founder | Home Depot | $500,000 |
| Robert C. McNair, Sr. | Houston | TX | Chairman | Houston Texans | $500,000 |
| Universal Truckload Services | Warren | MI | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | $300,000 |
| Chart H. Westcott | Dallas | TX | Executive | Commodore Partners | $200,000 |
| Services Group of America | Scottsdale | AZ | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | $200,000 |
| Leonard Tannenbaum | Greenwich | CT | Chairman | Fifth Street Finance Corp. | $150,000 |
| ETC Capital LLC | Farmington Hills | MI | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | $150,000 |
| HF Securities LLC | Brookfield | WI | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | $150,000 |
| Elizabeth M. Dunn | Key Largo | FL | Consultant | FTI Consulting | $100,000 |
| Jay Jensen | Madison | WI | Owner | Clasen Quality Coatings | $100,000 |
| Michael R. Jones | Herndon | VA | Principal | Vion Corp. | $100,000 |
| Terry J. Kohler | Sheboygan | WI | Owner | Windway Capital Corp. | $100,000 |
| Jonathan and Kerri Kuester | Palm Harbor | FL | None Listed | None Listed | $100,000 |
| George L. Lindemann | West Palm Beach | FL | Retired | Retired | $100,000 |
| Robert Luddy | Raleigh | NC | President | Captiveaire Systems | $100,000 |
| John C. Malone | Englewood | CO | Chairman | Liberty Media Corp. | $100,000 |
| John McMahon | Bethesda | MD | Chairman | Miller & Long Concrete | $100,000 |
| John A. Paulson | New York | NY | Owner | Paulson & Co. | $100,000 |
| Parker H. Petit | Marietta | GA | Chairman | Mimedx | $100,000 |
| Richard H. Roberts | Lakewood | NJ | Retired | Retired | $100,000 |
| Annette Simmons | Dallas | TX | Philanthropist | None | $100,000 |
| Thomas W. Smith | Boca Raton | FL | Investor | Prescott Investors | $100,000 |
| Edward St. John | Baltimore | MD | Chairman | St. John Properties | $100,000 |
| Andrew A. Ziegler | Brookfield | WI | Founder | Artisan Partners | $100,000 |
| Michael J. Cudahy | Milwaukee | WI | President | The Endeavors Group LLC | $75,000 |
| Edward and Elissa Czuker | Beverly Hills | CA | Chief executive officer/ Homemaker | Legado Companies/ Homemaker | $75,000 |
| John A. Catsimatidis | New York | NY | Executive | Red Apple Group | $70,000 |
| Daniel J. Arnold | Rockford | IL | Owner | Road Ranger LLC | $51,000 |
| Richard W. Colburn | Northbrook | IL | Vice president | Payroll and Insurance Group | $50,000 |
| William Haack | Elm Grove | WI | Chief executive officer | Haack Ventures | $50,000 |
| Robert and Jennifer Hillis | Milwaukee | WI | Chief executive officer/ Homemaker | Direct Supply Co./ Homemaker | $50,000 |
| Stanley S. Hubbard | St. Paul | MN | Executive | Hubbard Broadcasting | $50,000 |
| Ted Kellner | Milwaukee | WI | Chairman | Fiduciary Management | $50,000 |
| Craig Leipold | Racine | WI | Owner | Nashville Predators | $50,000 |
| Cary M. Maguire | Dallas | TX | Owner | Maguire Oil Co. | $50,000 |
| Joe Masterston | Naples | FL | Owner | Masterson Co. | $50,000 |
| E. Brett McMahon | Washington | DC | Executive | Miller & Long Concrete | $50,000 |
| John Peck, Jr. | Rancho Santa Fe | CA | Owner | Peck Enterprises | $50,000 |
| Julian H. Robertson, Jr. | New York | NY | Chairman | Tiger Management LLC | $50,000 |
| John S. Shiely | Elm Grove | WI | Retired | Retired | $50,000 |
| Launa Stayer-Maloney | Sheboygan | WI | Retired | Retired | $50,000 |
| Warren A. Stephens | Little Rock | AR | Chairman | Stephens Inc. | $50,000 |
| Donald J. Weber | La Crosse | WI | Chairman | Logistics Health | $50,000 |
| Couri Insurance Agency | Waukesha | WI | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | $50,000 |
| JMF Investment Holdings | Hillsboro Beach | FL | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | $50,000 |
| SSI Technologies | Janesville | WI | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | $50,000 |
*Table shows contributors who gave $50,000 or more.
Table 2
Top* Donors to Our American Revival – The Federal 527 Group
Created to Support GOP Presidential Candidate Scott Walker
January – June 2015
| Name | City | State | Occupation | Employer | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Willis Johnson | Franklin | TN | Retired Founder | Copart, Inc. | $500,000 |
| Michael and Mary Shannon | Denver | CO | President/ Homemaker | KSL Capital Partners/ Homemaker | $250,000 |
| Access Industries | New York | NY | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | $250,000 |
| Jeanne Sinquefield | Westphalia | MO | Philanthropist | Sinquefield Charitable Foundation | $250,000 |
| Richard Uihlein | Lake Forest | IL | Owner | Uline Corp. | $200,000 |
| Thomas W. Smith | Boca Raton | FL | Investor | Prescott Investors | $107,083 |
| Skybridge Capital | New York | NY | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | $100,000 |
| Michael Epstein | Rockville | MD | Executive | Willow Asset Management | $100,000 |
| Kenneth C. Griffin | Chicago | IL | Founder | Citadel LLC | $100,000 |
| Al Moore | St. Louis | MO | Founder | Moore Food Distributors | $100,000 |
| Don Dyer | Austin | TX | Founder | Professional Janitorial Services | $100,000 |
| Bernard Marcus | Atlanta | GA | Retired Founder | Home Depot | $100,000 |
| MacLean-Fogg | Mundelein | IL | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | $100,000 |
| Sarah Atkins | Arlington | VA | Consultant | TAMKO Building Products | $100,000 |
| Robert E. Rasmus | Houston | TX | Chief executive officer | Hi-Crush Proppants | $100,000 |
| Donald E. Tykseon | Eugene | OR | Founding director | National Cable Satellite Corp. | $100,000 |
| Richard H. Roberts | Lakewood | NJ | Retired | Retired | $100,000 |
| Copart Inc. | Fairfield | CA | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | $100,000 |
| David C. Humphreys | Joplin | MO | Executive | TAMKO Building Products | $100,000 |
| Frayda B. Lindemann | Palm Beach | FL | Homemaker | Homemaker | $100,000 |
| Brian R. Follett | Austin | TX | Founder and president | Heroic Media/Majella Cares | $100,000 |
| Allison Maher-Stern | New York | NY | Homemaker | Homemaker | $100,000 |
| John C. Malone | Elizabeth | CO | Chairman | Liberty Media Corp. | $100,000 |
| John M. McMahon | Bethesda | MD | Executive | Miller and Long | $100,000 |
| Central Transport LLC | Warren | MI | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | $75,000 |
| Bruce Kovner | Hobe Sound | FL | Executive | Caxton Alternative Management | $50,631 |
| Stanley S. Hubbard | St. Paul | MN | Chairman | Hubbard Broadcasting | $50,000 |
| National Tank Truck Carrier | Arlington | VA | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | $50,000 |
| Howard D. Crow | Dallas | TX | Retired executive | Crow Holdings | $50,000 |
| Jay Adair | Dallas | TX | Chief executive officer | Copart Inc. | $50,000 |
| Dave Graebel | Naples | FL | Founder | Graebel Companies | $50,000 |
| William Greehey | San Antonio | TX | Chairman | NuStar Energy | $50,000 |
| Roger Hertog | New York | NY | President | Hertog Foundation | $50,000 |
| Dan K. Eberhart | Houston | TX | Chief executive officer | Canary LLC | $50,000 |
| Virginia James | Lambertville | NJ | Retired | Retired | $50,000 |
| John G. Rangos, Sr. | Boca Raton | FL | Chairman | John G. Rangos Sr. Family Charitable Foundation | $50,000 |
*Table shows contributors who gave $50,000 or more.