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Reid employing rope-a-dope strategy against FEC probe into campaign expenses

WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is employing a rope-a-dope strategy against the Federal Election Commission, responding to an inquiry into expenditures by his campaign totaling $31,000 for “holiday gifts” with virtually no new information.

Reid’s legal strategy is revealed in a short, three-paragraph letter his campaign lawyer had hand-delivered to the FEC.

The agency had asked Reid to justify thousands of dollars his campaign steered to his granddaughter, identified in campaign documents only as “Ryan Elisabeth” for the purchases.

“The disbursement in question was made to purchase holiday gifts of nominal value for staff and Committee supporters, as permitted by Commission rules,” writes campaign attorney Marc Elias from the law firm Perkins Coie.

Ryan Elisabeth Reid, 23, the daughter of Reid’s son Rory, makes jewelry and also runs a small Brooklyn theater company.

The letter offers no other explanation of what kind of gifts Reid’s campaign purchased, how much each gift was worth, or how many were delivered. It offers no other substantive information, merely citing a relevant rule allowing the “nominal gifts.”

“We hope that this information adequately answers your question. If you have any additional questions, please feel free to contact the [campaign] Committee,” Elias writes.

The FEC wrote Reid’s campaign treasurer on March 21 demanding an “adequate response” for the unexplained line item by the end of April.

“Itemized disbursements must include a brief statement or description of why each disbursement was made. Please amend Schedule B supporting Line 17 of your report to clarify the following description: ‘holiday gifts,’” the agency wrote.

After Las Vegas reporters broke the story of the gifts, Reid said he was reimbursing his campaign for the costs.

“I thought it would be nice to give supporters and staff thank-you gifts that had a personal connection and a [hometown] Searchlight connection,” Reid said in a statement. “But I have decided to reimburse the campaign for the amount of the expenditure.”

The FEC rule Reid’s lawyer cited states that “gifts of nominal value and donations of a nominal amount made on a special occasion such as a holiday, graduation, marriage” or other occasion are not considered “personal use” and are therefore allowable.

Election experts put the limit of what might be an allowable gift at around $50, which would translate to about 620 gifts.

It will be up to the FEC and its lawyers to decide whether to pursue the inquiry further by requiring Reid to hand over receipts or other proof of the value of the jewelry purchases.

The FEC declined comment on Friday.