Romney camp wrote big check to Red Cross
Weeks after the November elections, while failed presidential candidate Mitt Romney was winding down his campaign and largely withdrew from the public eye, his campaign quietly made a donation of nearly $90,000 to the Red Cross, FEC filings show.
The January 31 filings show the Romney campaign gave $89,585.18 to the Red Cross on November 30, as New York and New Jersey struggled to provide food and shelter to the thousands of people who had lost power, heat, and even their homes in the aftermath of superstorm Sandy.
Between the official Romney for President campaign committee and Romney Victory Inc., the joint RNC and Romney fund, the campaign had approximately $4 million remaining in cash on hand as of December 31, according to the committees' FEC filings. The campaign is likely still receiving and paying bills leftover from the election, however, any excess funds could eventually be donated to other political campaigns or could be held by Romney in the unlikely event he decides to run for office again.
The Red Cross did not immediately respond to inquiries about whether or not the Romney campaign's donation was earmarked for Sandy relief aid. But in the days following the October storm, Romney struggled to find ways to stay in the headlines and was criticized by his detractors for staging photo ops aimed at touting his relief aid efforts.
