(Source: MIRS.news, Published 01/03/2024) Michigan Republican Party (MRP) State Committee members could be personally responsible for paying off the $509,009 line of credit owed to Comerica Bank if the party continues its suit against the bank and the trust that owns its former headquarters, according to the Washtenaw County GOP Chair.
John Dunlap wrote in a 30-page analysis that MRP Chair Kristina Karamo has exposed each member of the State Committee to severe legal and financial exposure by filing a “frivolous” lawsuit without the committee’s consent.
While admittedly not an attorney, Dunlap said the MRP State Committee is an unincorporated association, meaning its members can be held severally and jointly financially liable for damages and fines as a result of this suit.
MRP Attorney Daniel Hartman is arguing that since there’s no proof of a guarantee or collateral on the banknote and no proof that former MRP Chief of Staff Paul Cordes was authorized to sign off on the loan, the line of credit should be ruled invalid.
Dunlap noted that Hartman may be deemed a “fact witness” in the case since the suit relied on information made to Hartman himself. In that case, the court will likely rule a conflict between Hartman being both a witness and the attorney on the case.
Unless Hartman doesn’t use Hartman’s evidence, the state party will need to hire another attorney, meaning more expense, Dunlap wrote.
In reaction to the information, Crawford County Republican Chair and MRP Budget Chair Dan Bonamie asked: “Did we purchase data that is now being withheld by another trust and keeping us from fundraising to the fullest potential? Why do we not have access to all information owned or purchased by the MRP of the past?
“Ohh wait, is the MRP us or is it the elitists that have hijacked our party for years and moved everything except debt to trust?” Bonamie asked.
Gladwin County Republican Party Chair Mary Moylan said she can’t overlook “all of the contradictory facts” that Karamo isn’t addressing. She also called the suit “wasteful.”
“Sweeping these under the rug will only continue the fracture we now face,” she wrote in an email thread responding to Bonamie.
