By Kyle Davidson, Michigan Advance
The Michigan Democratic Party and the campaign arm for U.S. House Democrats is slamming U.S. Rep. Tom Barrett following a report that Barrett’s campaign and joint fundraising committee paid nearly $56 thousand to firms where his wife was employed as a campaign finance lawyer.
First reported by Politico, the Charlotte Republican and his joint fundraising committee – Barrett Brigade Victory Fund – first paid the law firm Butzel Long for legal services on Aug. 7, 2023, with campaign finance data from the Federal Election Commission showing he paid $31,000 for legal services over the course of the campaign.
Ashley Barrett was hired as counsel at the firm on May 2, 2023.
The firm also contributed more than $13,000 to Tom Barrett’s campaign and the Barrett Brigade Victory Fund between August 5 and Oct. 16 2024, despite not donating to Barrett in the 2022 campaign cycle, where he unsuccessfully challenged then-U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly).
Barrett’s disbursements to Aristotle International, a political software firm also sharply increased during the 2023-2024 campaign cycle, more than tripling between Oct. 28, 2022, and the campaign’s next disbursement on Aug. 7, 2023, after Barrett announced his candidacy in July. Aristotle International announced that it had hired Ashley Barrett as a compliance attorney for the platform on Feb. 28, 2023.
In a statement, Katie Smith, midwest regional press secretary for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee said “Tom Barrett got caught funneling money to companies his wife works for and owes Michiganders answers about whether he’s been personally profiting.”
Michigan Democratic Party spokesperson Sara Isaacson leveled similar criticism at the sitting representative, saying in a statement that “Barrett’s actions raise serious questions about whether he could be personally profiting off his campaign.”
Neither Butzel Long, nor Aristotle responded to a request for comment.
Barrett Campaign Strategist Jason Roe said in an email that Aristotle is one of the most widely used campaign software platforms in the country. While Ashley Barrett is a compliance attorney in another division within the company, Barrett’s use of the software precedes her employment there, Roe said.
Aristotle’s licensing fee increases based on the volume of donations, and as the campaign received more donations, the cost of processing and reporting those fees increased as well, Roe explained.
“In the 2022 election cycle, Barrett for Congress raised $2.8 million and in 2024 the campaign raised $5.1 million,” Roe said. “Additionally, the 2022 campaign was only 12 months long, while the 2024 campaign was 18 months long.”
As for payments made to Butzel, Roe said the campaign had retained multiple attorneys through the course of his 2024 campaign, primarily to address ballot access matters.
“Lawyers from Clark Hill and Dickinson Wright, and former Supreme Court Justice Kurt Wilder and Garett Koger of Butzel Long, were among the lawyers advising the campaign. Mrs. Barrett was an attorney at the firm at this time and while privy to the issues, was not directly involved,” Roe said, telling Michigan Advance Ashley Barrett’s compensation is unrelated to the campaign.
As for Butzel Long’s contribution to Barrett in his 2024 race?
“Rep. Barrett ran against an incumbent member of Congress in 2022 and very few PACs would donate against a sitting member,” Roe said. “In 2024, the seat was ‘open’ and Barrett for Congress received increased contributions from the previous cycle, among them Butzel Long’s employee PAC.”
Barrett represents Michigan’s 7th Congressional District, considered one of the most competitive in the nation.
While Barrett is unopposed in the GOP primary as he seeks reelection, former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink, retired Navy SEAL Matt Maasdam, Lansing-area tenants’ rights advocate William Lawrence, family physician Muhammad Salman Rais and Elyon Badger are seeking the Democratic nomination.
Michigan Advance is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Michigan Advance maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jon King for questions: info@michiganadvance.com.
