Ex-Gingrich Aide Received Questionable Payments

The Huffington Post reports:

ABC News reported on Tuesday that Renewing American Leadership, a tax-exempt nonprofit founded by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, had funneled more than $200,000 to for-profit Gingrich Communications over the course of two years. That money, the news organization discovered, went directly to Rick Tyler, Gingrich's longtime -- but now former -- spokesperson and director of his evangelical-themed nonprofit.

"ABC News was engaged for weeks in discussions with top Gingrich advisors about money from Gingrich's tax-exempt charity that went to his for-profit businesses -- known as related-party transactions -- which were never disclosed on the charity's tax forms. ABC News found evidence of the payments in a May 2011 audit commissioned by the West Virginia secretary of state's office.

[...]

Tyler, told ABC News in a series of email exchanges prior to his resignation that the charity spent no money on political activity and "did nothing to promote anyone's political career." Tyler also revealed that he personally was the beneficiary of the six-figure payments the charity made to Gingrich Communications –- money he was paid to run the charity until he began helping prepare Gingrich for a presidential bid."

Tyler's explanation made the payments seem innocuous enough. But a review of tax records for 2009 -- the most current available records -- show that Tyler actually received no salary and worked only 20 hours per week as chairman of Renewing American Leadership.

How then, to explain the payment structure? Tyler told The Huffington Post that he was paid through Gingrich Communications and not ReAL as a way of maintaining his pension and health care.