Ross calls for campaign investigation

Democratic gubernatorial candidate and University lecturer Doug Ross called for an investigation today into possible wrongdoing in Secretary of State Candice Miller's 1994 election campaign.

Allegations surfaced during the past year that Miller accepted illegal funds from political action committees linked to her campaign.

"I don't know that Candice Miller broke the law, but we're not going to know until there is an investigation," said Ross, who is an adjunct lecturer in the School of Public Policy.

Ross said Gov. John Engler should support an inquiry into the allegations. Engler is the only one who has the influence to get Miller to appoint an independent investigator, Ross said.

Engler "has the position to ask her to move," Ross said. "Who has the influence? I do not. Gov. Engler does."

John Truscott, a spokesperson for Engler, said the governor has no plans to pursue an probe into Miller's campaign finances. He said the Attorney General's Office is the only one that could appoint an investigator.

"The governor does not do that type of thing," Truscott said. "He has no ability to do anything about it."

Engler is in position to ask Miller to clear up the situation due to his role as leader of the state's Republican party and his past mentorship of Miller, Ross said.

"Governor Engler has been quite outspoken that allegations at the national level should be investigated," Ross said. "When we get investigations in our own backyard, those need to be looked at too."

Michigan Democratic Party Chair Mark Brewer recently alleged that a $34,000 contribution Miller received in 1994 from the Republican National Committee came from a contributor in Hong Kong who gave money to a political action committee that turned the money over to the RNC.

John Long, Miller's chief of staff, said records filed with the state Elections Bureau in 1995 by the Republican National State Elections Committee show the Democratic charges cannot be proved and are false.

"All the monies were raised in accordance with the Michigan campaign act," Long said. ''These accusations are factless, baseless and reckless," Long told the Associated Press.

Ross said Miller has not looked into any allegations recently because an investigation her office commissioned was invalidated by a lower court.

"We effectively have no campaign finance laws in Michigan right now because Mrs. Miller will not investigate anything," Ross said.

A complaint filed against Miller is being investigated by Michigan's Department of State Compliance and Rules Division, Long said.

Truscott said the attorney general would have already conducted an investigation if there were valid claims against Miller.

"Frankly, there's been no allegation of wrong doing," Truscott said. The Attorney General "would have been all over this a long time ago."

-The Associated Press contributed to this report.

02-27-98