Tom Loftus

@TomLoftus_CJ

Kentuckians for Strong Leadership, the potent super PAC that has bought millions of dollars in ads supporting the re-election of Republican U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell, raised $3 million during the quarter ending Sept. 30. And almost none of that money was contributed by Kentuckians.

The money came in very few - but very large - contributions from people and corporations from out of state, including a half million dollar donation from billionaire Robert C. McNair, founder, chairman and CEO of the Houston Texans.

Lawrence DeGeorge, an investor from Jupiter, Florida, gave a quarter million in the recent quarter. Combined with $250,000 he gave earlier, DeGeorge also has given a half million dollars so far to Kentuckians for Strong Leadership.

Christine Chao, a New York attorney (I believe she is a sister of McConnell's wife Elaine Chao) gave $400,000 to Kentuckians for Strong Leadership in September.

Contributors are limited by federal law to giving no more than $5,200 to the campaign of a candidate for federal office.

But since the U.S. Supreme Court's Citizens United decision in 2010, people and corporations can make contributions of unlimited amounts to outside super PACs which can run independent campaigns advocating the election of the candidates they support.

Since it was created by McConnell supporters in April of 2013, Kentuckians for Strong Leadership has raised $6.8 million. And, despite its name, records show that just 2.7 percent of that money ($182,000) has come from Kentuckians. The big money has come from Florida, Texas and New York.

The recent report also shows the KSL got $100,000 in donations in September from billionaire West Virginia coal operator Jim Justice and his family. Justice recently reached a deal with Kentucky regulators on cleaning up what state officials say is the largest number of surface mine reclamation violations in the past decade in Eastern Kentucky.

The only contribution to KSL from Kentucky during the quarter was $10,000 donated by Papa John's founder and CEO John Schnatter.

Here's a complete list of givers to KSL between July 1 and Sept. 30, according to the report it filed Saturday with the FEC:

Robert J. McNair, Houston, Texas, Houston Texans chairman and CEO, $500,000

Christine Chao, New York, New York, attorney, $400,000

Murray Energy Corp., St. Clairsville, Ohio, $300,000

Lawrence F. DeGeorge, Jupiter, Fla., LPL Investment Group, $250,000

Barbara R. Banke, Santa Rosa, Cal., Jackson Family Holdings, $200,000

Bradley M. Bloom, Wellesley, Mass., Berkshire Partners, managing partner, $100,000

Steven Chancellor, Evansville, Indiana, Ameriqual Group, chairman, $100,000

John W. Childs, Vero Beach, Fla., J.W. Childs Associates, chairman and CEO, $100,000

Craig J. Duchossois, Oak Brook, Ill., Duchossois Group CEO, $100,000

JC Land, LLC, (Joe Craft), Tulsa, Okla., $100,000

Kenny A. Troutt, Dallas, Texas, retired, $100,000

Richard Baxter Gilliam, Keswick, Va., Cumberland Development, manager, $90,000

Steven A. Webster, Houston, Texas, Avista Capital, co-CEO, $75,000

Stephen I. Chazen, Houston, Texas, Occidental Petroleum, chairman and CEO, $50,000

J. Christopher Flowers, New York, New York, J.C. Flowers & co., CEO, $50,000

Larry A. Mizel, Denver, Colo., MDC Holdings chairman, $50,000

John W. Nau III, Houston, Texas, Silver Eagle Distributors, president, $50,000

Richie Ray, Conroe, Texas, Richie's Specialty Pharmacy, $40,000

CKE Restaurants Holdings Inc., Carpinteria, Cal., $25,000

Richard T. Farmer, Mason, Ohio, Cintas, chairman, $25,000

Summer Hill Inc., Mason, Ohio, $25,000

Consol Energy Inc., Canonsburg, Pa., $25,000

Richard Duchossois, Barrington, Ill., Arlington International Racecourse chairman, $25,000

Cathy Leigh Justice, Lewisburg, West Va., Homemaker, $25,000

James C. Justice II, Beaver, West Va., The Greenbrier owner, $25,000

James C. Justice III, Beaver, West Va., retired, $25,000

Jill Justice, Beaver, West Va., homemaker, $25,000

James A. Patterson, West Palm Beach, Fla., PATTCO LLC, CEO, $25,000

Super Pac for America, Tampa, Fla., $25,000

Stacy Shuterman, Tulsa, Okla., Samson Energy, chair and CEO, $18,000

David Alan Bockorny, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Bockorny Group managing partner, $10,000

Robert Diener, Miami, Fla., Getaroom.com, founder, $10,000

Leslie F. Gilliam, Keswick, Va., Cumberland Development, $10,000

William Kinkler, Chicago, CC Industries executive vice president, $10,000

Anne W. Marion, Fort Worth, Texas, investor, $10,000

Brian T. Olson, Greenwich, Conn., Kokino LLC, president, $10,000

John Schnatter, Louisville, Papa John's International, founder and CEO, $10,000

Laurence Ellison Simmons, Houston, Texas, SCF Partners, $10,000

Larry D. Silver, Boca Raton, Fla., Silver Companies, $5,000

Gary L. Wilson, Malibu, Cal., private investor, $5,000

Robert J. Shillman, Rancho Santa Fe, Cal., Cognex Corp., founder, $5,000

Advocare, Plano, Texas, $5,000

Gregory J. Goff, San Antonio, Texas, Tesoro Corp., CEO, $5,000