PR Disaster for AOC as Authorities Receive Complaint of Illegal Dealings with Boyfriend
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez might be in hot water after a Republican group filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission about questionable payments made to her boyfriend.
In a complaint filed Wednesday, the Coolidge Reagan Foundation alleged that a PAC associated with Ocasio-Cortez, Brand New Congress, paid for suspicious marketing services from Ocasio-Cortez’s boyfriend, Riley Roberts.
Citing relevant FEC filings, the group said that Cortez’s campaign committee paid $6,000 to BNC and then BNC paid Roberts $6,000 with the description “marketing consultant.”
This seems to suggest that Ocasio-Cortez used the PAC as an intermediary to give her boyfriend a large sum of money, which would be against campaign finance laws.
“It’s not illegal for (Ocasio-Cortez) to pay her boyfriend, but it appears that they created some sort of scheme to avoid claiming the money (as a campaign expense),” Dan Backer, the attorney who filed the foundation’s complaint, told Fox News.
“What exactly did he do for that money?” Backer asked.
The complaint cited two possible FEC violations: one regarding personal use of campaign contributions and the other regarding proper disclosure of payments.
BNC responded to the allegation by saying Roberts is “is a professional digital marketing and growth consultant who specializes in social media presence and subscriber engagement,” adding that he was only hired on a “2 month trial period.”
Ocasio-Cortez added on Twitter, “No, I don’t shadily pay my boyfriend.”
The conspiracy machine is in full effect & it’s been disappointing to watch professionals get duped + amplify unvetted Medium posts as truth, treating journalism like it’s a high school Livejournal rumor mill or something.
No, I don’t shadily pay my boyfriend. Come on & VET. ⬇️ https://t.co/EY28Elj6aG
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) February 21, 2019
It’s important to note that these are only allegations and there is no way to tell if the FEC will take action. But it’s also important to understand the despicable nature of such a sketchy “payment” if the allegation is true.
Small donors give money to politicians with the expectation that their money will be used to help elect their candidate, and using the campaign funds for “personal use” would be a monumental betrayal.
This allegation is surfacing only two months into Ocasio-Cortez’s first term. One can’t help but wonder if we’re only seeing the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Ocasio-Cortez’s sketchy behavior.
In fact, the far-left representative was in another controversy surrounding possible ethics violations with her boyfriend last week.
Roberts was given a congressional e-mail address, which should be an ethics violation, according to the former chairman of the House Oversight Committee Jason Chaffetz.
“It’s totally naïve and inappropriate — you wouldn’t allow it in most companies, let alone the House of Representatives. There should be real consequences,” Chaffetz said.
“When I was in the House, my scheduler would forward my wife my schedule once a week. But you’re not allowed unfettered access. And he isn’t even her spouse,” Chaffetz said. “It should be referred to the ethics committee for further investigation.”
It seems like the 29-year-old socialist was in over her head when she decided to run for office; it hasn’t even been a year and she is embroiled in multiple ethical controversies.
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