Gov. Sam Brownback declined to comment Friday on the $500,000 loan from Lt. Gov. Jeff Colyer that has moved in, then out, then back in his campaign fund.
A campaign finance report for 2013 showed Colyer, a plastic surgeon, loaned the campaign the money on Dec. 31, 2013, helping push the governor's cash on hand total to nearly $2 million.
The following filing was released July 28. It showed that Brownback's campaign refunded Colyer his money Jan. 2, two days after he loaned it. The campaign then accepted another $500,000 loan from Colyer on July 23, the day before the next filing was due.
Joan Wagnon, chairwoman of the Kansas Democratic Party, called it a "blatant attempt to manipulate voters" by artificially pumping up the campaign coffers in advance of finance reports.
"Sam Brownback has again tried to fool Kansans with a sham loan from his lieutenant governor that fits right into his continued pattern of deception and political tricks," Wagnon said in a prepared statement.
Asked about the rationale behind the loan pattern after an unrelated news event Friday, Brownback declined to explain it.
"No, I can't explain the thought process," Brownback said. "I'm not going to explain the thought process on it."
Wagnon said the loans were a desperate attempt to make the governor's campaign appear stronger than it is to ward off the re-election challenge he faces from House Minority Leader Paul Davis, D-Lawrence.
"Brownback knows Kansans are coming together behind Paul Davis to fix the mess he has made of our budget, our economy, and our schools," Wagnon said. "His only response is to distort and mislead voters."
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