Creem, Rudnick Spar Over Transparency in State Senate Race

State Senator Cynthia Creem of Newton has released her campaign finance report several weeks early, gaining the initiative on her democratic primary challenger Charles Rudnick.

The two will compete for the First Middlesex and Norfolk district seat, which includes Newton, Brookline and parts of Wellesley precincts A, C, D, and E, when voters head to the polls on Sept. 14.

Rudnick, a Newton resident, said he wasn't ready to follow suit last week, but would be happy to do so. He said he had been planning to release the information by the state deadline, which is eight days before the primary.

"I'll do it as soon as possible," he said.

Rudnick has challenged Creem, a divorce lawyer, to recuse herself from participating in alimony reform legislation, and has vowed to spurn all contributions from lobbyists and political action committees. But Mike Sherry, campaign manager for Creem, said the senator's early finance disclosure has nothing to do with Rudnick.

"She's leading by example," Sherry said.

Sherry noted that in early July, Creem filed S2489, requiring more frequent reporting by legislative candidates. For regular elections, additional reports would be due monthly in the six months preceding a primary, with one more deadline in the month following the primary. In a special election, the monthly reporting period would extend to three months before election day.

"I believe that voters now have too little time to review and evaluate a candidate's finance report when there is only a single filing of all contributions from Jan. 1 to Aug. 31, due only eight days prior to the primary election.  This bill has yet to be enacted, so in its spirit, I am making public the donors to my campaign for the period of Jan. 1 to June 30, 2010," Creem said in a release last week.

Rudnick said he challenged Creem to recuse herself from work on alimony reform legislation beacuse "it does create the appearance of a conflict of interest."

Sherry did not agree, noting Creem, a chair of the State Senate Judiciary Committee, has set up a task force to study possible alimony reforms. "It seems rather silly for her to quit when her expertise and leadership is needed the most," Sherry said.

Rudnick also hopes to get Creem to agree to two debates in each of the district's communities. So far, he said, the candidates are scheduled for just two debates: Aug. 3 on Newton TV at 7 p.m. and a candidates night sponsored by the Brookline Democratic Town Committee Tuesday, Aug. 10, First Floor, at 7 p.m.

But Sherry said that in addition to those two debates, there was also a debate between the candidates at Newton South High School in May and there is an upcoming discussion with Gatehouse Media's editors  in the company's Needham office Aug. 12, which the papers cover, often recording video, and use to inform their endorsements. The discussions are not usually public.  

A story about the Newton South debate is posted on Rudnick's website.