GOP Contending It Is Entitled to Keep $500,000 Contribution

Republican Party fund-raisers say they are entitled to a $500,000 contribution by an elusive Los Angeles entrepreneur, despite claims by the Los Angeles district attorney that the entrepreneur is a “deadbeat dad” who owes more than $100,000 in back child support payments.

The entrepreneur, Michael Kojima, 50, was thrust into the limelight April 28 when he became the biggest contributor to the biggest political fund-raiser in U.S. history, the $9-million President’s Dinner. Kojima, who sat at the head table that night with President Bush, allegedly owes about $1 million in business and personal debts.

When Kojima’s creditors came forward to demand their share of the contribution, the embarrassed GOP placed the funds in escrow. But last week the Republican Senate-House Dinner Committee renewed its claim to the money.

In a special type of lawsuit filed in federal court in North Carolina, the GOP maintained it “has a valid interest in and is entitled to the political contributions.” The filing, formally called an “interpleader,” asked the court to “resolve all competing claims to property” and to absolve the fund-raisers of any liability involving the contribution.

“We are claiming the money was legitimately received by us and that we have as legitimate a claim as anyone else,” said Rich Galen, a spokesman for the President’s Dinner Committee.

Galen made the comments in response to a separate lawsuit filed against the committee by the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office. The Bureau of Family Support Operations filed the suit on behalf of Chong Kojima, one of Kojima’s four ex-wives, in an attempt to recover $101,600 in back child support payments to her and her two daughters.

Wayne Doss, director of the bureau, said he had been given the impression in his talks with Republican attorneys that they would be happy to turn over whatever Kojima owes in back child support.

“In all my discussions with the legal representative of the dinner committees, there was an implied if not expressed concern that they did not want to be in the position of . . . taking money from a ‘deadbeat dad,’ ” he said.

A previous wife, Harbor City garment contractor Soon Kojima, has a judgment against him for $100,000 and says Kojima never made a single child support payment to their two sons either.

But, she added, she had not sought the district attorney’s help because she had all but given up locating her former husband. Kojima also has extensive business debts to the Indonesia-based Bank of Lippo and a North Carolina fish company.

The White House has repeatedly referred inquiries about Kojima to Republican fund-raisers.