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Saturday, August 2, 2008
About that second check from Imperial Sugar — Barrow gave it back
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A couple days ago, the Insider posted an item about the reaction in Savannah to U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss’s questioning of an executive with Imperial Sugar — who testified in a Senate hearing that he had warned of dangerous conditions only weeks before the company’s local refinery exploded.
The attorney for the whistle-blower accused Chambliss of posing questions on behalf of the sugar company — which Georgia’s senior senator denied.
Adding to this dispute, the Savannah Morning News pointed to a $1,000 campaign contribution the company gave to Chambliss in 2007.
This, in turned, caused Chambliss’ friends to point out that Imperial Sugar also gave $2,000 to U.S. Rep. John Barrow (D-Savannah) — $1,000 in 2007 and another $1,000 this past June. And, indeed, Federal Election Commission data shows that Imperial wrote two checks to Barrow.
But spokeswoman Jane Brodsky has called to say that, while two checks were written, only one was accepted by the Barrow campaign. Barrow turned away the second check, written only a few months after the explosion.
Click here to see Barrow’s most recent list of donations from political action committees. There’s no entry for a 2008 check from Imperial Sugar.
