Welfare King: Dwayne & Inez Andreas (#3)

Dwayne & Inez Andreas, Decatur, Ill. Donated $348,950 since 1993. Party: Both. They gave $254,500 in soft money to the Democrats, and $30,000 to the GOP. They also gave $22,950 to 25 candidates, nearly all Republican.

View Andreas' itemized contributions according to the MoJo 400 searchable database.

By Dan Carney

Dwayne Andreas is chairman of Illinois-based Archer Daniels Midland, the nation's largest food and agriculture company. Although ADM markets no products under its own name, its grains, margarines, and alcohols are present in thousands of grocery store staples. In 1994, ADM reported sales of $11.3 billion and profits of $484 million.

Andreas' company is also the country's largest recipient of "corporate welfare" (see Mother Jones, July/Aug. 1995), receiving taxpayer subsidies for everything from corn to ethanol. (One ethanol subsidy alone nets the company $2.1 billion.)

Andreas keeps ADM's gravy train rolling with massive contributions. During the 1992 election, Andreas gave more than $1.4 million in soft money and $345,000 to individual candidates, using multiple donors in his company and family members (including wife Inez) to circumvent contribution limits.

Andreas gives money to any politician in a position to butter his bread. In 1992, George Bush proposed gasoline volatility standards that favored ethanol; he received a series of ADM payments culminating in a $400,000 check for a single fundraising dinner. Days after Bill Clinton received a June 1994 check for $100,000, his administration produced an ethanol-friendly mandate (later overturned by a federal court).

But Andreas' closest political ties are to Bob Dole, a longtime ethanol champion. In addition to his donations, Andreas frequently vacations with Dole and helped him acquire a condo in the Andreas-run Sea View Hotel in Florida. (Other past and present tenants include Howard Baker, Tip O'Neill, David Brinkley, and Robert Strauss.)

Despite Andreas' friends in high places, ADM is currently under investigation by the Justice Department for possible price-fixing. Investigators are also looking into allegations that ADM used off-the-book payments to help senior executives evade taxes on millions of dollars.

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