At dinner with my little brother and cousin the other night we were discussing my absolute favorite story about College Republicans; When a former chair of the NJ State College Republicans, Steve Damion, got a little too big for his britches and started trying to extort money out of a Republican campaign. The College Republican blog "Truth Caucus" published an exchange of emails, and it's really a sight to behold. Steve starts it off by setting the tone;
I would be more than happy to give that information to you and the Forrester Campaign, but I am looking at you to help us out as well.[...]
Keep me posted on this. If there is a 3,000 dollar check waiting for me I am coming running and the campaign will have total access to our resources at all times, no problem.
The State Chair of the real Republican party responded with an epic smackdown. Some choice excerpts;
Let me suggest that you need to re-read what you wrote, think about the people your working with, and spend this weekend thinking about the reasons I shouldn’t share your email with every legislator and county chairman in the state (I can promise you that if I do, the few dollars you’ve raised will be the last you see from any Republican organization or candidate) and then contact the national CR office to have your ass removed. Your approach is 100% out of line – not to mention quite possibly illegal.[...]
The first thing you’ll do is get Sean exactly what he asked you for first thing Monday AM with your apology and assurance that he will have from you complete and unqualified cooperation from now on.
[..]
Now that I see what you’re all about, I’d also like by then a complete accounting for the CR account for the past 2 years. I want to know where every dollar came from and every penny went. I’d also like a monthly report from you detailing the same info.