Dallas, TX – The Dallas lawyer who helped John Edwards' former mistress move across the country has donated $3.5 million dollars since 2005 to help fuel a Democratic resurgence in Texas.
The Austin American-Statesman is reporting that Fred Baron has been by far the largest donor to a group called the Texas Democratic Trust.
Baron has helped Democrats rebound from near-obscurity in the Texas House to within striking distance of winning a majority of seats this fall. Baron started the Texas Democratic Trust and gave it $1.9 million in 2005 and 2006, providing more than 80 percent of its funding.
The Edwards saga has given Republicans new ammunition to attack Baron and those who have benefited from his donations. This week, Republicans criticized Democrat Diana Maldonado, who is running for a state House seat, because she received $25,000 from a group that Baron gave $25,000 to in April.
Baron was thrust into the national spotlight after acknowledging that he quietly began sending money to Edwards mistress Rielle Hunter to resettle in California.