Loss didn't cool Ricketts' jets

Pete Ricketts may have lost his U.S. Senate race in spectacular fashion after spending millions of his own money, but he's still using his wealth to exert political pull.

Ricketts, 45, became a familiar face to Nebraskans in 2006 after blanketing the airwaves with TV commercials. Now he is using his bank account and his time to create think tanks and political organizations in Nebraska that seek to shape public policy and generate debate.

He has helped to create an education think tank and an economic policy think tank. He also formed an independent political committee. In addition, he is helping to fund a Nebraska group that opposes President Barack Obama's health care overhaul.

Ricketts also is one of the state's major political donors and a first stop for conservatives seeking office. Last year, he gave $36,000 to the Nebraska Republican Party and $17,000 to legislative candidates.

Some say Ricketts is paving the way for another political run.

Ricketts declined an interview request, but he said in comments submitted through a Chicago public relations firm that he has “no plans” to run for public office.

“I, like many Nebraskans, am making a difference through my civic engagement at a grassroots level and have no plans to leave my private life to run for elective office,” Ricketts said in the statement.

Some political observers still wondered about his ambitions.

“He's certainly one of the benchmark donors of the party. He's one of the go-to guys from a funding standpoint, and I don't think there is any question he intends to run for statewide office again,” said Jordan McGrain, an Omaha GOP political consultant.

Ricketts is the son of J. Joe Ricketts, founder of the Omaha-based online brokerage TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. The Ricketts family, worth more than $1 billion, recently completed the $845 million purchase of the Chicago Cubs, Wrigley Field and a 25 percent stake in a regional cable television network.

Pete Ricketts worked at Ameritrade until 2006, when he left his position as chief operating officer to run for the Senate.

He spent more than $12 million trying to unseat Democratic U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson. In one notable TV advertisement, he donned a red stocking cap at his mother's urging. The commercial was intended to show the family's humble roots in southeast Nebraska.

Despite the spending, Ricketts lost by 28 percentage points — the worst showing by a Republican in a Nebraska U.S. Senate race in a quarter-century.

After the election, Ricketts started an asset management company, Drakon LLC, in downtown Omaha. And he stepped up his involvement in politics.

Ricketts is the Republican national committeeman for Nebraska. He is helping to recruit candidates and serving as a liaison between the state party and the national GOP, and also serves on the executive committee of the national party.

“Pete Rickets obviously cares very deeply about this state, and he has the intellectual curiosity and financial wherewithal to be involved in a lot of things,” said Mark Fahleson, chairman of the Nebraska Republican Party.

Exactly how much Ricketts has spent on the think tanks and other groups is not known. Most are registered as nonprofits and are not required by law to divulge their donors.

David Kramer, who ran against Ricketts for the GOP Senate nomination, said he thinks Ricketts simply wants to make a difference in Nebraska.

“He's doing what I would think any person who is passionate about the issues does — that's using the time, the talent and the treasury they have to advance the causes they believe in,” said Kramer, an Omaha attorney.

Contact the writer:

444-1309, robynn.tysver@owh.com