Maine: Andre Cushing's finances under scrutiny...by his sister

The Assistant Majority Leader of the Maine state Senate, Andre Cushing III, has long had one of the most active leadership PACs, fueled by donations from multinational corporations, many of them members of the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC, which Cushing helps lead as a member of the national board of directors and state legislative chair.

But this week, Cushing's finances -- political and otherwise -- have been under scrutiny on account of a dispute with his own sister.

As reported in Tuesday's Portland Press Herald, Cushing's sister has filed a law suit alleging a variety of fraudulent financial transfers involving a family corporation (that both have shares in) and various corporate and PAC entities (which she does not.) She alleges well over a $1 million in fraudulent transfers.

In today's Press Herald, a follow up: the sister, Laura Cushing McIntyre, has filed a complaint with the state's ethics commission requesting an investigation into tens of thousands of dollars of alleged transfers between Cushing's campaign and PAC (on one hand) and a corporation he controls (on the other). The transfers don't show up on Cushing's various campaign finance disclosures, as required under Maine law, meaning either they didn't take place or he's failed to comply.

For details, read on from the links.