WASHINGTON — The full extent of accused swindler Norman Hsu's political network was revealed for the first time Monday in campaign finance reports filed by presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), who refunded $804,850 in contributions from 249 Hsu associates.
The donors came from 22 states and Washington, D.C., but Californians accounted for the largest amount refunded from the Hsu network, $308,000. New Yorkers contributed $286,000, and $55,000 came from donors in New Jersey and Connecticut. Investors in both California and the New York area were major participants in Hsu's financial operations.
Last month, federal prosecutors charged Hsu with fleecing investors of $60 million and reimbursing at least two for political donations made in their names.
Among those who received a $4,600 refund was Wilfred Hsu, a San Francisco real estate investor not related to Norman Hsu. He said Monday that he donated at the fundraiser's request but never invested in his alleged schemes.
He said he was disheartened by the turn of events that led to the refund. "I'm not thrilled about this whole thing. When I got the money, it was consolation of sorts in the midst of this whole fiasco," he said.
Regardless of whether he donates money to Clinton again, Wilfred Hsu remains a supporter. "She is certainly capable of becoming a great president," he said.
In the 2005-2006 election cycle, the 249 donors gave as much as $670,000 to federal candidates other than Clinton, a comparison of the names with other campaign records shows. Among the other recipients, the largest appeared to be the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee at $78,000, followed by Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill with $43,000, and Harold Ford, a Tennessee Democrat who lost his race for the U.S. Senate, at $42,000.
Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy (D-R.I.) received $28,000 and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee received $27,000. A political action committee for Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill) received $24,500, and California Sen. Dianne Feinstein's campaign got $19,000.
The Los Angeles Times arrived at the amounts by comparing the names and residences of Clinton donors linked to Hsu with the names of donors to other candidates in federal elections between 2004 and 2007.
Last month, the Clinton campaign announced it would sever ties with Hsu and refund donations he had drawn from others.
