FEC: Romney Campaign, RNC Paid over $150M to Two Well-Connected Consulting Firms

Federal Election Commission financial reports filed Thursday showed that two consulting firms with close ties to key staffers at the Romney campaign and the Republican National Committee were paid more than $152 million by the three organizations that funded Mitt Romney’s unsuccessful 2012 presidential campaign.

FLS Connect, LLC, the Minnesota-headquartered firm where RNC chief of staff Jeff Larson was a partner from 1999 to 2010 and Romney campaign political director Rich Beeson was a partner from 2005 to 2007 and again from 2009 to 2011, received $56.3 million during the 2011-2012 election cycle. $38.6 million was paid to the firm by the Republican National Committee between January 1, 2011 and November 26, 2012, according to FEC reports. In addition, the Romney campaign paid FLS Connect $17.7 million during the same period.

Payments to FLS Connect, LLC were primarily for telemarketing services.

Targeted Victory, LLC, the Virginia-headquartered firm that was co-founded by Romney campaign digital director Zac Moffat, received a total of $96.4 million during the 2011-2012 election cycle. $72 million came from Romney Victory, Inc., $22 million came from the Romney campaign, and $2.4 million came from the Republican National Committee.

Payments to Targeted Victory LLC were for digital consulting and online media.

FLS Connect, LLC received $19.6 million of the $38.6 million it was paid by the Republican National Committee during the 2011-2012 election cycle in the last five weeks covered by this most recent filing (October 18 to November 26, 2012). The company received more than 500 payments from the RNC during these five weeks in amounts that ranged from less than $100 to one payment of $432,000.

Targeted Victory, LLC received $24.7 million of the $72 million it was paid by Romney Victory, Inc, during the the two year 2011-2012 election cycle in the last five weeks covered by the most recent filing. The company received only seven payments from Romney Victory, Inc. during these five weeks, but the amounts ranged from a low of $627,000 to a high of $7,200,000.