New revelations tie NDP, Horwarth directly to Cornerstone
Media Release
Mark MacDonald Campaign
Less than one day after it was revealed Andrea Horwath smeared her local hospital with a misleading story, new documents reveal that Andrea Horwath misled reporters and failed to disclose the true relationship between the Ontario Cornerstone Leadership Corporation and the Ontario NDP.
Cornwall - Sep. 29, 2011 - Less than one day after it was revealed Andrea Horwath smeared her local hospital with a misleading story, new documents reveal that Andrea Horwath misled reporters and failed to disclose the true relationship between the Ontario Cornerstone Leadership Corporation and the Ontario NDP.
Asked this morning if Cornerstone plays any financial role in the NDP campaign, Horwath said “None whatsoever. None whatsoever. It’s a separate corporation, separate board of directors, no role whatsoever in our campaign, no financial, you know, no financial connection whatsoever. It’s completely separate.” (Andrea Horwath Media Scrum, September 29, 2011)
And she continues to duck questions on the whereabouts of $100,425 of taxpayer money and another $100,000 in union funds granted to Cornerstone for accessibility.
But that’s not the whole story. Horwath was in a position to know how her party raises money.
Documents obtained by the Liberals reveal that links between Cornerstone and the NDP are far greater than previously believed. Not only are all 8 members of the Cornerstone board current or former board members of the NDP, but the corporation is actually bankrolling the NDP’s campaign.
Land registry documents show:
Cornerstone served as collateral for a $4,350,000 loan that is currently financing Horwath’s 2011 campaign
Cornerstone served as collateral for a $3,450,000 loan that financed the 2007 NDP campaign
And contrary to Andrea Horwath’s claim that Cornerstone “has nothing to do” with her, new documents also reveal that Andrea Horwath sat as an ONDP Vice President when the Cornerstone fundraising scheme was hatched, and served as the 2007 NDP Campaign Co-Chair. (OntarioNDP.com)
The Cornerstone campaign’s sole goal was to purchase a property that would finance NDP election campaigns:
“The Cornerstone Campaign is a 3-year capital campaign aimed at purchasing a permanent party headquarters in order to finance future election campaigns...purchasing a building will allow the Ontario NDP to continue to qualify for election campaign loans.” (NDP Cornerstone Campaign, The Business Case, pg. 1)
It’s time Andrea Horwath told reporters and Ontarians the truth on the NDPs intricate relationship with Cornerstone. It’s time she said what the NDP did with the $100,425 they received from the federal government and provided assurances that money was not funnelled to the NDP campaign. It’s time she returned the money.
