In a final burst of horse trading for the 118th Congress, the House Ethics Committee announced that it was ending campaign finance-related investigations into Reps. Sanford Bishop (D-Ga.), Wesley Hunt (R-Texas), Ronny Jackson (R-Texas) and Alex Mooney (R-W.Va.).
But the Ethics panel also released a statement cautioning members against the personal use of campaign funds. And it issued new guidance spelling out what’s allowable — and perhaps more importantly, what’s not.
Here’s the key portion from the Ethics Committee’s statement:
In a 2020 referral to the Ethics Committee, the Office of Congressional Ethics — the independent ethics watchdog — found that there was “substantial reason to believe” that Bishop “converted campaign funds from Sanford Bishop for Congress to personal use, or Rep. Bishop’s campaign committee expended funds that were not attributable to bona fide campaign or political purposes.” Bishop’s office said the veteran lawmaker implemented new campaign reporting practices and personally paid back some expenses.
OCE also alleged Hunt and Jackson improperly used campaign funds to pay for a private club. Both lawmakers denied that they’d committed any ethics violations.
In 2021, OCE alleged that Mooney improperly received a trip to Aruba from a campaign vendor, as well as using official staff for campaign work and “personal errands.”
OCE also asserted Mooney “may have withheld, concealed, or otherwise falsified information during an OCE investigation.”
Mooney, who is retiring after losing a GOP primary to now Sen.-elect Jim Justice (R-W.Va.), insisted he had done nothing wrong and blamed Democrats for the probe.
