Goldson Digs Hole Deeper on McMahon Payment.
Embattled New Haven Democratic City Alderman Darnell Goldson is had trouble keeping his story consistent when the New Haven Register followed up on my column in Sunday’s Courant. Republican Linda McMahon’s 2010 United States Senate campaign, we now know, paid Goldson $15,000 for some sort of services that may or may not have been performed.
McMahon told me last week that Goldson submitted a plan after a mid-September meeting. By the end of the month, Goldson had announced his support of the Greenwich Republican and denied he was being paid. Under cover of a shill organization, however, Goldson had received the $15,000 payment. Goldson tells the Register’s Mary O’Leary that he’ll have to go to the bank and get copies of checks to show how he spent the money. That account should be under Campaign Resources, not Goldson personally.
In backfilling, Goldson appears to have forgotten his comments on the New Haven Independent’s website on October 3rd, likely at least a day after he cashed his $15,000 check. Having come under fire in New Haven for supporting McMahon against Democrat Richard Blumenthal, Goldson wrote:
The New Haven Register called me on Thursday morning, and asked me if I were working for McMahon, since someone from city hall had called them to say so. Since I busy most of the day in Massachusetts, I did not return the call. Finally, at 6 pm, when I went to attend a committee meeting at city hall, the reporter approached me with the question. I told her the truth, I had a sign in my yard, I personally supported her, and I was not working for her campaign. (Emphasis added)
I did not approach the press, they approached me. Once I answered her question, I decided it was best for me to inform the other news outlets, so that my story (the truth) would be told, and not city hall’s.
The McMahon campaign ballyhooed Goldson’s support in an October 1st email that cited a Register story. It included this misleading account from Goldson:
Goldson confirmed he is actively and publicly supporting McMahon, though he is not employed by the McMahon campaign. He has a McMahon sign on his lawn and is willing to knock on doors in support of the former WWE executive.
By then, Goldson had submitted a plan to the McMahon campaign and, according to today’s Register story, seemed to be looking for more to mount a bigger urban voter contact operation. Goldson’s statement raises another question. Did he get more?