HIL'S SOFT MONEY JACKPOT

Despite her famous soft money deal with Rick Lazio, Hillary Rodham Clinton collected her biggest soft money campaign contributions during the last few weeks before Election Day, according to newly released federal reports.

The First Lady took in $2.1 million in unregulated cash after Oct. 18 - and nearly $1 million of that sum came during the final week of the campaign.

It was the single most intense infusion of soft money giving during the entire Senate race.

In all, the First Lady collected $7.5 million in soft money to help her win New York's Senate seat, according to an analysis done for the Daily News by Campaign Study Group, a consulting firm that uses computers to tabulate soft money.

Lazio collected no soft money for his race, but as in the case of Democrat Clinton, his Republican Party spent several million dollars of soft money on his behalf.

Soft money - unlimited donations, to political parties, that aren't regulated by campaign spending laws - became a controversial issue in the Senate race.

Clinton, under pressure from Lazio, agreed to a deal banning its use for TV ads. But the latest campaign records show that both parties, especially the Democrats, continued to deploy soft money for mass mailings, telephone calls and get-out-the-vote efforts - while they shifted hard money from direct contributions to buy TV ads.

According to these records, just 57 givers - a collection of union bosses, arts patrons, corporate tycoons and Hollywood moguls - contributed most of Clinton's soft money.

The single biggest check of the campaign came Oct. 30 from Local 1199 of the National Union of Hospital Employees, which dumped a quarter of a million dollars into party coffers on Clinton's behalf.
That union is an affiliate of another big Clinton backer, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. AFSCME lavished $100,000 on Clinton on Oct. 25, then another $50,000 on Nov. 1. AFSCME had already given $125,000 this year.

Two weeks before Election Day, the computer processing division of defense contractor Lockheed Martin in Teaneck, N.J., wrote a check for $25,000.

Conoco, the Houston-based gasoline wholesaler, was more generous with New York's senator-to-be: The company gave $50,000 on Oct. 27.

"These are contributions that would be completely illegal if given to a candidate directly," said Jeff Kronin, press secretary for Common Cause, an organization that advocates campaign finance reform.
"The lesson of the Clinton-Lazio campaign is it really shows that voluntary bans are not the answer. We have to rid the system of this money permanently, " Kronin said.

"It's unusual for soft money to be given in this way," said Steve Weiss, spokesman for the Center for Responsive Politics, a group that tracks political influence. "These are figures that are huge even when they're being given to a national committee of one of the parties for a national race," he said.

Overall, New York's 2000 Senate race set records for spending in a campaign.

Lazio shelled out $39.6 million in his losing effort, while Clinton spent $29 million - and that doesn't include any of the soft money totals.

The overall cost of the campaign - including spending by both parties as well as expenditures by Mayor Giuliani, who dropped out of the race in May - soared to more than $120 million.
Graphic: HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON'S TOP 10 SOFT MONEY GIVERS
1. Daniel Abraham Palm Beach, Fla.
Slimfast tycoon and Democratic financier
$324,000
2. American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Washington Public employees union
$275,000
3. National Union of Hospital Employees Local No. 1199
Philadelphia Pharmacist & healthcare union
$250,000
4. Sant Chatwal New York
Hotel and Indian restaurant boss
$210,000
5. Marvin Davis Los Angeles
Entertainment magnate / head of Davis Cos.
$200,000
6. Denise Rich New York
Democrat activist and songwriter
$120,000
7. Walter and Selma Kaye New York
Kaye Insurance Co. execs
$106,000
8. Eve Chilton-Weinstein New York
Wife of Miramax Films chieftain / head of Elegant Films
$100,000
9. Vinod Gupta Omaha, Neb.
Creator of database retailer InfoUSA
$100,000
10. Mike Rienzi Astoria, Queens
Rienzi & Sons importers $87,000

Sunday, December 24th 2000, 2:15AM
Source: Daily News