LITTLE ROCK — Republican congressional hopeful Rick Crawford has blocked efforts by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette to verify his claim that he paid back more than $12,000 in bankruptcy debts.
On Tuesday, his campaign said he will not sign privacy waivers that would allow the newspaper to determine whether he had repaid his creditors. He also declined to obtain and release the billing records himself.
Last week Crawford told the newspaper that he had paid back every penny of his 1994 bankruptcy filing - all $12,611.67 of it.
He wasn’t legally obligated to do so, but he said it was the right thing to do. He also said he hadn’t kept any records that could prove it.
Crawford will face a fellow Jonesboro resident, Democrat Chad Causey, in the Nov. 2 election in the 1st Congressional District. The winner will replace retiring Rep. Marion Berry.
“Everything that’s in the public realm is there for discernment and debate, but anything outside of the public record is not,” said Jonah Shumate, Crawford’s campaign manager.
Asked why the campaign wouldn’t release proof that the bills had been paid, Shumate said:
“It’s not about proving it; it’s about what’s on the public record is the public record. That’s just where we’re going to be on this,” Shumate said.
Some of the creditors cannot be located, but the largest debt - $3,600 - belonged to University Hospital and Clinic in Columbia, Mo. This week, hospital officials said they would be able to release information about whether Crawford paid them back if he signed a privacy release form.
Shortly after the Democrat-Gazette asked Crawford to give his permission, the candidate called the hospital about his past debt and was referred to the billing department, said hospital spokesman Matt Splett.
Ultimately, Crawford opted not to make the payment records available.
Crawford, 44, said last week that he “didn’t have a real clear memory” about the reasons for $4,239.95 in medical costs listed in his bankruptcy filing. Orthopedic and radiology bills were listed in the filing, as well as the hospital costs.
Tuesday, Shumate said Crawford does remember what led to the medical bills but won’t be discussing it.
“I don’t think why Rick was in the hospital is up for public debate. I don’t think that’s a barometer of why he is running for Congress,” Shumate said.
Crawford’s unwillingness to release the payment information left Democrats curious.
“It certainly sounds like Mr. Crawford has some explaining to do,” said Mariah Hatta, executive director of the state Democratic Party.
Meanwhile, the Causey campaign released a brief statement.
“While the story concerning our opponent’s bankruptcy is changing every day, our focus remains the same: creating jobs here in Arkansas, bringing back fiscal responsibility, and getting America back on track,” said Candace Martin, Causey’s spokesman.
On July 28, Crawford talked with the Democrat-Gazette about his bankruptcy as a 28-year-old living in Springfield, Mo. He said the experience might give him insight into helping the country avoid fiscal catastrophe. Deficit reduction has been Crawford’s biggest issue.
In that interview, Crawford didn’t mention that he had paid any of the money back.
A day later Shumate told conservative blogger Jason Tolbert that Crawford had “made good on all his obligations.”
On Friday, Crawford went further, telling the Democrat-Gazette he had paid back all of the debt, even though his Chapter 7 bankruptcy dissolved those debts. He said he paid his creditors back by 1998.
But, he said, he hadn’t kept receipts and didn’t even have a copy of his bankruptcy filing, so he couldn’t prove his story.
Princella Smith, who lost to Crawford in the May primary, said she knew about his bankruptcy but decided not to bring it up when they competed for the Republican nomination in the eastern Arkansas district,preferring to run a “clean campaign.”
She asked Crawford’s staff more about the bankruptcy when they asked for her endorsement. She was satisfied with the story that it was a youthful mistake that he had learned from, and so she endorsed him, she said.
“As far as his chances, it’s up to the 1st District of Arkansas to decide. ... It depends on how open and transparent he is. If I were him, I’d answer every one of your questions. If he dodges any questions, that’s going to be trouble,” said Smith, a Wynne resident.
Although Crawford’s campaign said it wanted to deal only with the public record, it did offer to release a private document Tuesday: Crawford’s credit report from April 2008.
It shows Crawford has a 742 Equifax rating and a 737 TransUnion rating.
State Republican Party Executive Director Chase Dugger said, “We have every reason to believe businessman Rick Crawford when he says he fulfilled financial obligations that date back almost two decades.”
Causey brought back “more than just his support for Obama’s big-government agenda” when he moved back from Washington, D.C, Dugger wrote in an e-mail. “He brought his Washington-style personal attacks.”
Causey had been Berry’s chief of staff before resigning to run for Congress.
“It’s unfortunate that Chad Causey and his friends want to personally attack Crawford rather than engage in meaningful dialogue about issues that matter to Arkansans in the first district,” Dugger wrote.
Front Section, Pages 1 on 08/04/2010