News is breaking that a company owned by multimillionaire Republican Senate candidate Eric Hovde was the recipient of thousands of dollars in federal government subsidies intended to benefit Wisconsin tobacco farmers.
Hovde, a hedge fund manager who spent the last two decades in Washington D.C., is running as a fiscal conservative, opposed to tax loopholes and government subsidies.
Online federal records indicate that between 2010-2012, Hovde’s real estate and development company was the recipient of $7,989 in federal subsidies under the Tobacco Transition Payment Program [1], a program Hovde previously stated was, “just another thing that I would try to kill.” [2]
“This Republican primary has been full of hypocrisy and absurdity, but Eric Hovde is kicking it up a notch by taking advantage of the exact same tax loopholes and government subsidies he decries,” Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Mike Tate said Thursday. “This is precisely why Eric Hovde needs to fully disclose his financial interests and tax records. Wisconsin deserves to know what else Hovde is hiding.”
[1] – Hovde Took Tobacco Subsidies (Wisconsin Rapids Tribune, July 19, 2012)
[2] – Hovde Says He Will Drop Tobacco Subsidies (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, July 19, 2012)
