Edwards campaign mum on arrested fundraiser

A fundraiser for former Sen. John Edwards’s (D-N.C.) 2008 presidential campaign ran into trouble last weekend.
Chris Albrecht, the chairman and CEO of Home Box Office (HBO), was arrested early Sunday morning in Las Vegas on suspicion of assaulting his girlfriend, identified as Karla Jensen by the Los Angeles Times. Albrecht had earlier attended the title fight between Oscar De La Hoya and Floyd Mayweather Jr., which his own channel had broadcast. He was later released.

Albrecht announced Tuesday that he would be taking a leave of absence, telling HBO employees in an internal memo that he was an alcoholic who had a relapse. On Wednesday, Time Warner, HBO’s parent company, announced that it had relieved Albrecht of his post.

{mosads}Regarding the case, “we are gathering the facts and no one should rush to judgment,” said David Chesnoff, a Las Vegas attorney who is representing Albrecht. 

“We have not received the case yet from our police department, so nothing can be done,” said Kathy Karstedt, secretary for District Attorney David Rogers in Nevada’s Clark County. “Once we get it, we will review the case and decide whether or not to file charges.”

Representatives for Edwards did not respond to calls from The Hill before press time.

Albrecht is listed as one of Edwards’s 431 “solicitors” — a fundraiser who gathers checks and contributions from other individuals for the campaign. But unlike the other top-tier Democratic campaigns, there is no minimum requirement that Edwards’s bundlers must raise.

The entertainment executive also gave the former North Carolina senator $2,300 this past March for his presidential run. Edwards’s representatives did not answer queries as to whether the candidate would return Albrecht’s contributions or the donations that he helped raise.

Albrecht has been a significant donor for Democratic candidates in recent years. The HBO executive has spent roughly $180,000 in total contributions on candidates and committees since 1997, according to information available from the Federal Election Commission.

Aside from Edwards, Albrecht has given money to other presidential candidates this past quarter as well, including Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), and former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack (D) — each of whom received $2,300. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) received the most from Albrecht: $4,600 for the primary and general campaigns.

Other Democratic campaigns did not return calls and e-mails asking for comment on Albrecht. Obama has returned contributions from federally registered lobbyists after his campaign described the donations as an accident that ran counter to his stated policy.

“This money is not quite as tainted as money from the lobbying scandal associated with Jack Abramoff,” said Craig Holman, a campaign finance lobbyist for Public Citizen. “If he ends up being convicted, I would certainly return any money he fundraised and contributed.”

“It is unconnected to campaign finance. I would reserve judgment at this stage of the allegations,” said Kenneth Gross, a partner at Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom, when asked whether Albrecht should be removed from Edwards’s campaign.

As part of the Hollywood glitterati, Albrecht has attended several Democratic fundraisers this year. The executive has stopped by at events for Clinton and Edwards, according to press reports.

In his memo to HBO employees, Albrecht apologized for his actions.

“I had been a sober member of Alcoholics Anonymous [AA] for 13 years. Two years ago, I decided that I could handle drinking again. Clearly, I was wrong,” wrote Albrecht in the memo, posted on the Los Angeles Times’s website.

The HBO executive said he has committed himself to sobriety and will work with AA on his problem.