Dems claim Durant and daughter ripped off charity

Michigan Democratic Party Chairman Mark Brewer dropped a bombshell this morning that may have obliterated Republican Clark Durant’s campaign for Senate.

Brewer alleges that he has uncovered documents that show a charity run by Durant funnels 95 percent of its funds – more than $600,000 a year – to the Durant family, particularly the candidate’s daughter, Hope Durant Loomis.

Brewer is calling for an IRS investigation into the Genesis Foundation, a nonprofit Durant formed in 1991 to help Detroit children secure a private school education. The charity is connected to Detroit’s Cornerstone Schools, a charter school group which Durant founded.

“Clark Durant claims to be a ‘rebel with a cause,’ but it turns out he’s siphoned off almost $1.4 million from a charity originally created to help Detroit kids afford school. It’s clear the only cause Durant cares about is his own,” Brewer said.
"A man who unlawfully abuses charities and foundations for personal gain is not the kind of 'rebel' Michigan families need."

Brewer’s own political investigation was sparked by a recent story in the Detroit Free Press that found Durant’s $500,000 salary at Cornerstone, a relatively small organization that educates 1,500 students, exceeded the pay received by many university presidents and CEOs of national charter school networks.

Well-schooled in hardball politics from his days in Macomb County, Brewer compiled a series of publicly available documents – Durant’s financial disclosure statements and his charity’s IRS forms -- and lined up an independent attorney specializing in nonprofit and tax law to bolster his case.

"Based on the documents we have reviewed, The Genesis Foundation appears to be a complete sham organization used for the single purpose of paying Clark Durant and his daughter, Hope Loomis, more than $600,000 per year,” Tammie Tischler alleged.

"Large donations are made by two donors, and the tax returns show those funds go directly to Durant and Loomis in the form of compensation. Non-profit law prohibits the use of charitable assets for the private interests of founders, family members and board members. This is a blatant violation of the laws governing nonprofit organizations."
The two donors, according to the Dems, are billionaire builder William Pulte and Auburn Hills investor Bruce Becker. They gave the foundation about $1.8 million from 2008-10. 

I had heard some damaging details were coming down about Durant’s daughter, but I never dreamed it would be anything this explosive.

The media are awaiting word from Durant.