Prologue – David Stafford Reade ran against Sam Aanestad in 1996 for Assembly. There is a particular hatred for Aanestad in the entire LaMalfa / Gilliard / Reade crew.
Click here to see an ad run against David Reade in 1996. Reade was exposed for having three DUI’s, including one with possession of narcotics. It would be reasonable to assume that David Stafford Reade may well have been involved in this illegal operation as well.
(This is re-printed from the Aanestad campaign)
Doug LaMalfa and the Big Cover-Up
LaMalfa Campaign Team Scrambles to Synchronize “Story” After Being Caught Conspiring to Break Federal Law; Aanestad Files FEC Complaint
(Penn Valley, CA) – Yesterday, official Internet records revealed that Doug LaMalfa’s congressional campaign created an anti-Aanestad attack website and an attack online advertising campaign, and willfully violated federal law by putting an opponent’s campaign disclaimer on those attack communications, thereby trying to make it appear that they came from another source.
Now, the LaMalfa campaign is caught with a substantial number of contradictory stories as the scramble to “synchronize” their explanation of the illegal activity complicates their case.
Yesterday, LaMalfa spokesman Dave Gilliard told the Sacramento Bee that “neither Doug LaMalfa, nor the LaMalfa campaign, had any knowledge or involvement in the construction or posting of the website in question, which just came to our attention this morning.”
But website hosting records revealed the very person who registered the Sam4Congress.com website is LaMalfa Chief of Staff and paid campaign operative Mark Spannegal.
And, as fellow candidate Michael Dacquisto pointed out in the Redding Record-Searchlight yesterday, Doug LaMalfa was personally made aware of the website last week during a candidate forum, where both Sam Aanestad and Mr. Dacquisto focused their attention on the unethical website while LaMalfa brushed off the complaints. Mr. Spannegal was also in attendance.
“That furious tapping noise you hear,” said Aanestad spokesperson Mark Standriff, “is the LaMalfa campaign team wearing out their email delete buttons as they seek to get rid of a lot of contradictory evidence.“
“The Federal Election Commission prohibits both campaign staff and agents of the campaign from engaging in illegal campaign communication activities,” said Barry Pruett, legal counsel for the Aanestad for Congress campaign. “Whether or not Mr. Spannegal is being paid is moot, according to the FEC. Frankly, the only person who is more involved in Doug LaMalfa’s campaign than Mark Spannegal is Doug LaMalfa himself.”
Mr. Pruett is also formally filing a complaint with the FEC this morning, citing failure to disclose campaign communications on behalf of the LaMalfa for Congress campaign by a campaign staffer or agent, willfully committing fraud by disclaiming a campaign website as produced by another candidate, illegal campaign expenditures by a member of the LaMalfa campaign, and conspiracy to break federal law. The Aanestad for Congress campaign is asking the FEC to conduct an immediate and full investigation.
288. Not to be confused with getting your freak on.
Last night in Amador County there was a candidate forum. It was put on by the Upcountry Community Council, a group that was formed the “represent” the unincorporated rural areas such as Pine Grove, Pioneer, Buckhorn and others.
It should also be noted that no local media was there.
The forum was “moderated” by a Lynn Morgan – who was told to me is a board member of this group. I was also informed that there is some affinity between this group and the tribe (that gave Jeff Seaton $10,000).
It appeared that there was gross bias on the part of Lynn Morgan. She squashed my audience questions about Jeff Seaton’s character and even let Seaton himself avoid tough questions.
The first question of the night was from Amador County Republican Party member (who vociferously denies being on Jeff Seaton’s Campaign Team) Lois McDonald who accused Seaton’s opponent of child abuse.
Given the way Jeff Seaton behaved in people vs. Vick or the way Mr. Seaton’s current mistress treated her children – it appears once again that the Amador County Republican Party is on a suicide mission to destroy the GOP in Amador County.
Despite the best efforts to the Upcountry Community Council and team Seaton to control the outcome, Jeff Seaton was a buffoon.
His opponent gave excellent, concise answers to questions with confidence and Jeff Seaton appeared to babble and ramble in an attempt to channel Perry Mason.
Case and point – Jeff Seaton went 288 claiming Courtroom experience since Age 24 even though he passed the bar in 1990. Jeff Seaton also pimped his uniform again. As a veteran, I can tell you that someone like Seaton would have been blanket partied in the Navy.
Seaton also went into a major 288 rampage over the Mailer his opponent sent entitled “Justice for Sale”. Apparently, 75% of Amador County (which does not include the Amador County Republican Party) has a problem with the Casino attempting to purchase a Judge.
Jeff Seaton’s campaign PO Box is box 288, something he pointed out which channeling Barack Obama and accusing his opponent of being a racist for pointing out the donation from the tribe.
They were not able to stop all the tough questions – by multiple accounts, Jeff Seaton who performed poorly all night (like he apparently does in court), got nailed about a campaign finance question relating to the $5,000 check from the left-wing law firm in L.A.
Seaton’s defense was as retarded as his handling of the Perdue case (and the Perdues were denied a question by Lynn Morgan as well) – “I don’t know why they sent me the money…”
Excuse me? If I got $5k, I sure in the hell would know why. If a candidate I supported got $5k, I sure in the hell would know why.
But, Jeff Seaton did not stop there – he finished by saying that the check cashed and that he sent them a thank you note.
It is worth noting that the audience gasped when the law firm was described + who they donated to. (aka Steinberg, Tony Cardenas)
Jeff Seaton had as bad an evening as the last 288 case he took. Section 288 of the penal code refers to Child Molestation…
Dave Gilliard says that Doug LaMalfa had nothing to do with the attack Website that Mark Spannagel put up? You expect us to believe that Doug LaMalfa’s chief of staff and Doug LaMalfa did not talk about this? Mark Spannagel won’t blow his nose without talking to Dave Gilliard and David Stafford Reade first.
SO – who authorized this? Who actually placed the content on this site and vetted it? It is way too sophisticated and well researched to have been done by Mark Spannagel alone. I think we just got another Gilliard special.
The website originally carried the disclaimer “Free Thinkers for D’Acquisito,” apparently a reference to another Republican candidate running for the open seat, according to a screenshot that the Aanestad campaign provided. But candidate Michael Dacquisto says he had no part in the site, and records released by the company hosting the site show that the domain name was registered in the name of Mark Spannagel, the chief of staff of yet another Republican candidate, state Sen. Doug LaMalfa.
This is called fraud. (Which is a felony)
There are two important questions to ask – Who helped Mark Spannagel do this? Who authorized Mark Spannagel to do this?
Some people call this Karma, others call this “What Comes Around”.
The Redding Record-Searchlight hammered Doug LaMalfa. They also repeated the calls from the Sam Aanestad campaign for Mark Spannagel to resign as Doug LaMalfa’s chief of staff.
What Spannagel did is a felony if prosecuted. Unlike the people Spannagel has been accusing (the Placer CRA) there is actual evidence of wrongdoing against Spannagel.
Quoting the Record-Searchlight:
The Aanestad campaign said it filed a suit last week and subpoenaed records from the site host wix.com. Those records were delivered Monday and showed the site was registered through godaddy.com on April 18 by Spannagel and paid for with a Visa credit card, the Aanestad campaign said.
The site initially posted with a disclaimer at the bottom, “FREE THINKERS FOR D’ACQUISTO,” according to a screen shot submitted by the Aanestad campaign.
Michael Dacquisto, also a Republican candidate in the race, said he never authorized anyone to use his name in connection with the website, and the first he heard of it was April 23 when he talked to Aanestad, who had left a message for him at his home.
“I do not know what the phrase “FREE THINKERS FOR D’ACQUISTO” refers to and I have never heard of that group or spoke with anyone who has identified himself or herself as being associated with that entity,” Dacquisto said in an email to the Record Searchlight.
It is amazing to see this stuff starting to get exposed. Northern California has had to endure LaMalfa running around deceiving people that he is some sort of Conservative God while his minions are committing fraud by the bushel.
There are two important questions to ask – Who helped Mark Spannagel do this? Who authorized Mark Spannagel to do this?
Mark Spannagel is Doug LaMalfa’s Chief of Staff in the State Senate.
Unlike Mark and his friends accusing their political enemies of being investigated by the FBI and other nefarious things… this time Mark’s arrogance has cost him. I have known that Mark has engaged in destroying signs, running drills against opponents, manipulating local tea parties and the like… but this time he stepped in it.
This is the same Mark Spannagel that got tossed out of CRA for 5 years for committing fraud and the same Mark Spannagel that got caught committing fraud inside of the CYRF:
CA CD 01 Breaking News:
LaMalfa Campaign Caught Conspiring To
Violate Election Law
Internet Registry Records Confirm LaMalfa Campaign Manager Registers “Hit Website” Against Aanestad, Violates Numerous Federal Laws While Claiming Site Created by Another Candidate in CD1 Race
(Redding, CA) – In a clear violation of federal campaign finance disclosure laws, and verified by release of official Internet registry documents, Doug LaMalfa’s congressional campaign registered and built a negative website about Sam Aanestad, then posted the site on the Internet while disclaiming its contents to link with another candidate in the race, Republican Michael Dacquisto. The website,www.Sam4Congress.com, violates a number of campaign finance laws, including several illegal independent expenditures and conspiracy to improperly disclaim a federal campaign website.
The website originally posted a disclaimer that stated, “Free Thinkers for D’Acquisito.” Last week, Dacquisto angrily denied any involvement in the site and demanded its true creators take it down. The false Dacquisto site disclaimer was removed and the site now contains no official campaign disclaimer.
To determine the source of the violation, the Aanestad campaign filed a lawsuit last week and subpoenaed records from the site host Wix.com. Monday, those records were delivered by Wix.com to the Aanestad campaign, showing the site was registered through GoDaddy.com on April 18, 2012 by LaMalfa Campaign Manager and Senate Chief of Staff Mark Spannagel, and paid for by a Golden 1 Visa Credit Card, presumably belonging to Spannagel.
The response to the subpoena, along with captured screen shots of the original disclaimer, are all linked below in PDF form.
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FED Code of Federal Regulations, section 110.11 clearly requires disclosure of:
(1) All public communications, as defined in 11 CFR 100.26, made by a political committee; electronic mail of more than 500 substantially similar communications when sent by a political committee; and all Internet websites of political committees available to the general public.
(2) All public communications, as defined in 11 CFR 100.26, by any person that expressly advocate the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate.
In addition to the numerous federal campaign law violations, Dr. Aanestad has contacted an attorney regarding possible legal action against Sen. LaMalfa’s chief of staff for libelous statements regarding his professional qualifications.
PDF OF SUBPOENA RESPONSE FROM WIX.COM
LINKS TO CAPTURED SCREENSHOTS
Original False Aanestad Website with Original Disclaimer PDF Link
False Aanestad Website Front Page
False Aanestad Website Page 5
False Aanestad Website Page 6