October 2, 1999
Web posted at: 11:25 p.m. EDT (0325 GMT)

WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, October 2) -- Tony Coehlo, general chairman of Vice President Al Gore's presidential campaign, made questionable financial decisions while directing the U.S. pavilion at the 1998 World's Fair in Portugal, according to the findings of an unreleased government audit.

And while the U.S. effort at the Portuguese exposition was supposed to be funded entirely with private money, a report from the United States Information Agency's inspector general, obtained by CNN, says that $6.5 million of government money eventually was used.

Coehlo is a former congressman from California who left the House in 1989 amid questions about his personal financial dealings. He was appointed to head the U.S. pavilion in part because of his fund-raising capabilities when Congress did not authorize any money for the event.

But when the private money was not forthcoming, the report found that government agencies not connected with the USIA contributed $6.5 million, about 82 percent of the total spent on the pavilion.

The report concluded that the USIA violated "the spirit if not the letter" of the law.

USIA may have to pay for $300,000 sculpture

Among the other allegations in the report:

• Coehlo and staff members of the U.S. pavilion may have mismanaged $210,000 in free airline tickets, some of which went to people who did not work for the U.S. pavilion.

• Coehlo obtained a $300,000 personal loan from a Lisbon, Portugal, bank to purchase a blue tile sculpture called "The Wave." A private foundation was to repay the loan, but, as of December 1998, no money had been received. The USIA may now end up being responsible for repaying the money.

• USIA officials hired Coehlo's niece as an assistant in apparent violation of USIA regulations. The agency also hired two stepsons of the U.S. ambassador to Portugal, even though USIA executives raised the possibility that their hirings might be a conflict of interest. The report also suggests that the two earned higher salaries than other people in the same jobs.

• At Coehlo's urging, a contractor who claimed $26,000 worth of travel and relocation expenses not covered by his contract was reimbursed for the full amount.

Gore campaign: Coehlo contribution 'tremendous'

CNN repeatedly attempted to contact Coehlo's personal attorney, Stan Bran, but he did not return phone calls Saturday. The USIA referred questions to the State Department, where officials said they had not completed their review of the report.

Gore campaign spokesperson Kiki Moore released a statement saying that "Tony Coehlo does a great job as general chair of Gore 2000.

"Day in and day out, he makes a tremendous contribution. Under Tony's leadership, the campaign will continue to advance an agenda that will improve the lives of America's working families."

Coehlo was tapped to chair the Gore campaign in May amid concerns about conflicts among the staff and the sluggish start of the vice president's 2000 effort.

Coehlo was House majority whip in 1989 when he resigned from Congress after allegations surfaced that he failed to reveal details about a $100,000 junk bond purchase and to disclose $50,000 in services from a Texas savings-and-loan operator.

He was never formally accused of anything improper. After he left Congress, he became a successful investment banker.

Saturday, October 2, 1999

• Audit raps Gore campaign chair's management of U.S. World's Fair effort
• President preaches tolerance at California fund-raiser
• Religion, grandparents' rights, balancing powers await Supreme Court
• Letters outline Gore's dilemma over Vietnam
• Clinton urges voters to push for patients' bill of rights
• Republicans set priorities for budget showdown

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