You KNEW there HAD to be BIG CA$H circulating behind the scenes

The Foreign Doctors Act that whizzed through our bought-and-paid-for General Assembly in late-June, early-July has the state’s voters hopping mad. It clearly establishes special treatment for doctors imported from overseas who – conveniently — will work for a lot less than actual Americans who slaved their way through medical school and residencies. 

What made this so urgent to the “honorables” on Raleigh’s Jones Street?  There IS a physician shortage in this country.  But Capitol Hill will have to share some of that blame.  It’s about more than immigration.  In the 90s, Congress decided to limit the number of residencies for the training of new domestically-trained physicians.  

Legislators in Raleigh told us they were going to “fix” the rural doctor shortage in North Carolina post-haste. They seemed singularly focused on importing foreigners instead of lifting limits on domestically-trained personnel.

The Foreign Doctors Act appeared to be caught up in the legislative process through May 22 of this year.  

Investigative maestro Dan Kane found out about a kinda-sorta fundraiser on May 31 honoring the speaker of the NC House and senator Phil Berger:

Three months ago, the N.C. Association of Indian Americans hosted a fundraiser for two of the state’s most powerful politicians that raised more than $150,000 for each of their campaigns, a watchdog’s review of campaign finance records show.

At a packed Indian restaurant in Chapel Hill’s Meadowmont community, UNC-Chapel Hill Trustee Jim Blaine, N.C. Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey and N.C. Labor Commissioner Luke Farley spoke in support of longtime Senate leader Phil Berger and first-term House Speaker Destin Hall.

[…] But the N.C. Association of Indian Americans’ organizing papers filed with the N.C. Secretary of State show the organization claimed a nonprofit status — known as 501(c)(3) under the federal tax code — that prohibits political fundraising.

Its website describes the group as a social welfare nonprofit — known as a 501(c)(4) under the tax code — that allows for fundraising,which the website says the association has done since 2016, the year it was founded. But the IRS website doesn’t show the association nor its tax returns, which is required of such groups.

Association president Saikiran Kolavennu did not respond to The News & Observer’s requests for information about the fundraiser or for the group’s tax returns.

Federal law requires tax returns to be made available upon request in person and within 30 days if a request is in writing. The N&O visited Kolavennu’s home, listed as the association’s address, to request the documents in person last week. He did not respond to a message left there with a family member. […]

Spokesmen for Berger and Speaker Hall’s campaigns say their organizations paid for the May 31 fundraiser but did not have needed invoices by June 30 to include the spending in their latest campaign finance reporting. They did not respond to a request for copies of those invoices.

Bob Hall, the retired executive director of Democracy North Carolina, is preparing a complaint to the State Board of Elections about the fundraiser, he said. He wants the board to investigate the association’s nonprofit status to determine if it can engage in political fundraising.

The association’s business support, as evidenced by the companies listed on the fundraiser backdrop, also might prohibit it from raising money for candidates, he said. State law bars businesses from underwriting political fundraisers.

“It is a question as to what is this entity and whether this event is a violation of state law — state campaign finance law,” Hall said. “I’m concerned about that.”

If the board determines the association could not hold the fundraiser, Hall said all the campaign money it raised should be forfeited to the state as the law requires.

Donations to two powerful politicians

Hall reviewed the LinkedIn pages of donors who gave the day of the fundraiser and up to two weeks after the May 31 event, he said. The majority were people he identified as Indian Americans, mostly from the Triangle, he said.

Hall identified more than $338,000 in contributions — with Speaker Hall collecting more than $173,000 and Berger more than $165,000. After checking state records, Hall found many people on his list appeared on campaign donor rolls for the first time.

The $173,000 to Hall, a Caldwell County Republican, is nearly a quarter of the roughly $748,000 he raised between January and June of this year. The money tied to the association’s fundraiser for Berger, a Rockingham County Republican, accounts for nearly 10% of his campaign’s haul during that time.

Kolavennu and Kolappa have made donations to candidates in both major political parties. But the association event at the Lime & Lemon Indian Grill & Bar appears to be one of the largest fundraisers they’ve helped organize, Berger and Hall’s campaign records show.

In an interview, Kolappa said the association did not run afoul of election law because it did not collect the money, nor did it spend “a dime” on the fundraiser.

“There were many people that were there, that is true,” he said. “But the association did not collect the money.”

An invitation posted on the association’s website identifies the event as a fundraiser. The invitation says it “cordially invites you to a reception in support” of Berger and Hall, and gives Kolavennu’s association email to reserve a seat. It does not list a contribution amount needed to enter.[…]

The two legislative leaders’ campaign finance reports do not show any money spent on the fundraiser, or any in-kind contributions from people who attended or the businesses listed on the banner. Campaigns are required to report such expenses under state election law, Hall said, and that will be part of his complaint.

Berger and Hall did not respond to interview requests. Michael Luethy and Jordan Shaw – their respective campaign spokesmen – said in a joint statement that the campaigns “paid all event expenses once the invoices were received, as the next report will show and as they have done for numerous events over the years.”

The CEO of one of the companies whose logo was on the banner, Pinnacle Tek, told The N&O the company made a donation to the event.

“We donated money,” said Lavanya Poosarla, but she did not say how much. She also gave $500 each to Berger and Hall’s campaigns. […]

The Foreign Doctors Act passed the legislature in late June and got signed into state law on July 1.

[…] Critics said Murphy’s change of view was prompted by donations. But he likely also felt lobbying pressure from a well-organized group of Indian workers in his district.[…]

Certainly not convicting anyone here. But it sure is interesting timing.