“We complied with his original order. It is becoming evident that this has become abuse of his office and power, ” D.C. Councilman Harry Thomas said last week, after Attorney General Peter Nickles indicated he wanted more detailed information from the Ward 5 legislator as part of an ongoing investigation into his operation of a nonprofit known as Team Thomas. Ironically, Thomas’ remarks mirrored those made by business owners whose lives have been turned inside out. Thomas, his council colleagues and their pro bono attorney, Robert Trout, have demanded an ever-expanding body of information from Banneker Ventures and others as part of the legislature’s investigation into a multimillion-dollar government contract awarded to that company to renovate city recreation centers. Thomas has said the council simply has been trying to get to “the bottom” of things.
Nickles has been similarly motivated.
He started an investigation at the request of the D.C. Republican Committee and Tim Day, a Republican who opposed Thomas in the general election. They accused the councilman of using the nonprofit to amass a political “slush fund.” They also charged Team Thomas with conducting business without the requisite District licenses and permits.
Thomas told me he wouldn’t respond to the AG’s demand for additional information by Nickles’ Wednesday deadline. He said he likely would go to court.
“Mr. Nickles is continually moving the target, trying to fish for information to prove I’ve done something wrong,” Thomas added.
That’s a charge Banneker’s President Omar Karim and his lawyer, A. Scott Bolden, made about Thomas’ gluttonous council investigation. But Thomas doesn’t see any similarities between the legislature’s demands and those being made by the AG.
The gander somehow believes his situation is different.
While Thomas turned over the first round of court-ordered data about his organization, including its total receipts — $216,159 since 2008 — he failed to provide a list of donors or an accounting of expenditures.
Without such details, it’s difficult to determine the accuracy of the Republicans’ charge. Further, it’s impossible to know whether any contributors had business before the council and whether their contributions influenced any of Thomas’ actions. Those factors are critical to understanding whether the government’s integrity and ethics have been compromised.
Equally troubling is the fact that Team Thomas apparently didn’t file any tax returns or pay taxes on its earnings. The group doesn’t hold a federal or local tax exemption. There also are questions about whether Thomas earned any personal salary from the organization. He has said he did not.
“We are within the three-year [filing] period,” Thomas told me. “[Taxes} are not an issue, yet,” he said.
Certainly, all these issues are within the scope of the AG’s responsibilities. Thomas, not unlike others who have been or who are being investigated, may find the entire affair irritating, disconcerting and intrusive. But as an elected official, he has to be held accountable for his actions, especially when it appears he may have circumvented the very laws he is charged with upholding.
Jonetta Rose Barras’ column appears on Monday and Wednesday. She can be reached at [email protected].
