WASHINGTON – Mayor Vincent Gray’s campaign team says that the charges against businessman Jeffrey Thompson in no way suggest that Gray knew about Thompson’s illegal campaign finance activities.
The charges filed Monday morning say that Thompson funded off-the-books campaign activity for various candidates including Hillary Clinton and Gray.
“No one has suggested that Hillary Clinton knew of Thompson’s illegal activities. Mayor Gray has not been afforded the same presumption of innocence,” says Chuck Thies, Gray’s re-election campaign manager.
“The Jeffrey Thompson charging document should be read carefully,” Thies says in a written in statement. “Common misconceptions espoused by our opponents and echoed in the media are not substantiated in the Jeffrey Thompson charging documents.”
Gray has maintained that he did not break any laws.
Several Gray and Thompson associates have pleaded guilty to felonies related to a shadow campaign that helped fund Gray’s 2010 run for mayor.
Gray, who is running for re-election, faces a crowded field in the April 1 primary.
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