OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
When it comes to spending campaign cash Democrats appear to prefer to keep it in the family.
Squad member and Missouri Rep. Cori Bush has had the alarm sounded on her by a government watchdog group that is asking the Federal Elections Commission to investigate her payment to her husband for private security services, Fox News reported.
The Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust sent the complaint to Lisa Stevenson, the acting general counsel for the FEC, on Thursday asking the commission to investigate whether “Rep. Cori Bush and her campaign committee may have used campaign funds for personal use.”
“Bush’s campaign paid her now-husband, Cortney Merritts, $60,000 for security in 2022 despite him not having a private security license, which is needed to conduct such services in the St. Louis region. While Merritts collected the payments, Bush’s campaign also spent $225,281 with PEACE Security and $50,000 with an individual named Nathaniel Davis for personal protection,” Fox News reported.
“It appears Rep. Bush’s campaign may have made payments for services that were unnecessary or above fair market value because of her personal relationship with the payee,” the group said. “If so, these payments would qualify as either impermissible payments to a family member or an impermissible gift.”
“Therefore, we request the FEC investigate whether Rep. Bush converted campaign funds for personal use by paying a salary that was not for bona fide services at fair market value,” it said. “Ultimately, if one or more campaign laws are found to have been broken, we request the FEC hold the respondents accountable.”
She made the payments to her husband even as he did not have a license to provide security in St. Louis or anywhere in Rep. Bush’s district.
“With the exception of St. Louis Police Officers, all persons performing a security function in the City of St. Louis must be licensed to do so through the Private Security Section,” the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department said on its website.
Rep. Cori Bush husband was paid $60K for security without license: report https://t.co/xi2cTDz0Tu pic.twitter.com/JYM4oOvLie
— New York Post (@nypost) February 28, 2023
'Squad' Rep. Cori Bush hit with FEC complaint over private security payments to husbandhttps://t.co/TzPZzFfsvB
Political office should not be used to enrich yourself. It should be a selfless act to help your country. #TermLimits #AgeCap— OneSmallVoice 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@SmilingOutrage) March 2, 2023
And Rep. Bush is not the only Democrat that has been scrutinized for paying family members.
California Democrat Rep. Maxine Waters has paid her daughter over $1.2 million since 2004, which included the younger Waters getting another six figures in payments in the 2022 cycle.
“Karen Waters pocketed $192,300 from her mother’s campaign to keep her ‘slate mailer’ operation afloat between Jan. 2021 and Dec. 2022, a Fox News Digital review of Federal Election Commission filings shows. The setup involves outside campaigns paying Waters’ campaign to appear on the slate mailers – or endorsement mailers – sent out to constituents in the Los Angeles area,” Fox News reported.
“The practice is highly unusual on the federal level, and Waters appears to be the only national politician using it to grab committee cash. Slate mailers, however, are commonplace in her home state of California, though critics say it involves deceptive practices over one campaign paying another for a politician’s backing in an election. Waters received the green light to run the operation from the Federal Election Commission in the fall of 2004. Since then, Karen Waters has received more than $1.2 million in payments from her mother’s campaign,” the outlet added.
It’s legal for federal lawmakers to employ family members on campaigns, but the practice is frowned upon by ethics experts.
Now, Republicans are aiming to put a ban on lawmakers from putting family members on the campaign payroll after many prominent Democrats have been called out over the practice.
Republican Texas Rep. Pat Fallon has introduced legislation called the Family Integrity to Reform Elections Act, which would prevent campaign funds from going to a candidate’s immediate family.
The bill, if passed, would also make the candidate directly responsible for knowingly violating the provision.
“The Family Integrity to Reform Elections (FIRE) Act is a critical step to reducing nepotistic practices in American campaigns. Allowing direct family members to be on the take of campaigns must come to an end. For example, Maxine Waters, the worst perpetrator, has given her daughter over $1.1 million in campaign funds. This is utterly egregious, and I will not stand by as the integrity of our elections is further diminished,” Fallon told the Daily Caller.
“Maxine Waters [paid] $1.1 million to her daughter from campaign funds,” Fallon said in a statement. “Ilhan Omar, $2.9 million to her husband from campaign funds. James Clyburn, over $200,000 to multiple family members from his campaign.”
“The numbers speak for themselves,” Fallon added. “Americans are sick of politicians abusing their voters’ hard-earned money. This modern-day spoils system must end. My bill shines a light on shady campaign finance practices while punishing those who take advantage of these funds to enrich their families.”
