Morgan: Probe detractors

Former House Speaker Richard Morgan on Wednesday took legal steps to shut down the independent political campaign being waged against him and like-minded Republicans by his GOP rivals.

Morgan, a state House member from Moore County, formally asked for an investigation by the State Board of Elections into whether several groups with strong ties to former state Rep. Art Pope, a Raleigh retail executive, were using illegal corporate contributions to help defeat Morgan and his allies.

"I see that my colleagues and I are attacked unfairly through the use of corporate dollars that for a long time have been illegal in North Carolina," Morgan said Wednesday. "I'm tired of it and I want to do something about it."

Morgan is asking the state board to stop negative ads and mailings that are paid for with corporation contributions connected to Pope, who is a former Republican nominee for lieutenant governor and a major funder of conservative causes.

But Pope said his company, Variety Wholesalers, and the nonprofit groups that have been sending out mailings against Morgan and his allies, had carefully complied with the law.

"There is no truth to it," Pope said of Morgan's charges. "This is simply a publicity stunt by Richard Morgan who is afraid to answer to Republican primary voters in his own county and would rather try it in the courts to stop his voting record in the legislature with Democratic Speaker Jim Black from being told to the public."

GOP House lawmakers have been bitterly divided since 2003, when Morgan joined with Black to form a co-speakership after the House was divided 60-60 between parties.

Some in the House Republican caucus viewed Morgan's coalition government as a betrayal -- and have criticized Morgan's action on a range of issues involving taxes and redistricting.

The state Republican Executive Committee, the GOP's ruling body, has voted to work to oust Morgan.

Pope has helped bankroll the effort to purge Morgan and his allies. His company, Variety Stores, contributed at least $460,000 in 2004 to defeat five Republican House members including Rep. David Miner of Cary and nearly defeated Morgan.

This election cycle, Pope-connected organizations have once again sent out at least four mailings that attack Morgan and GOP Reps. Rick Eddins of Raleigh, Robert Grady of Jacksonville, Julia Howard of Mocksville, and Stephen LaRoque of Kinston.

The case could test the limits of the use of corporate money in state political campaigns.

"You have over half million of direct corporate money put in by a CEO millionaire to buy legislative seats," said Michael Weisel, an attorney and former Wake County Democratic chairman who is representing Morgan.

North Carolina law prohibits the use of corporate contributions in election campaigns and limits individual contributions to $4,000. Pope says the law allows corporate contributions as part of an issue advocacy effort.

Morgan's complaint argues that the corporate contributions crossed the line from advocacy into trying to defeat or elect candidates -- particularly when viewed in the broader context of a coordinated effort to defeat Morgan.

But Pope says his attorneys carefully reviewed what was allowed under state law.

Pope said it was "hypocritical" for Morgan to complain about using corporate contributions. Morgan was connected to the N.C. Republican Main Street Committee, which raised money in 2004 from corporations with business before the legislature.

Morgan said he set up the Main Street committee because "many of my colleagues were under attack and we had to fight back." He said it has since been disbanded.