Outspoken U.S. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) is under investigation by the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ethics, chaired by Rep. Susan Wild (D-PA).
Wild released a joint statement with the top-ranking Republican on the committee, Rep. Michael Guest, announcing the inquiry.
The brief statement named Ocasio-Cortez as the subject of the matter. It noted that the requirement to disclose the investigation publicly “does not itself indicate that any violation has occurred, or reflect any judgment on behalf of the committee.”
While the statement did not describe or hint at what the allegations against the New York congresswoman may be, it did reveal that the complaint was received as a referral from the Office of Congressional Ethics, which reviews claims of misconduct by members of Congress.
The complaint was initially received on June 23 of this year.
A spokesman for Ocasio-Cortez responded to the announcement by stating, “The congresswoman has always taken ethics incredibly seriously, refusing any donations from lobbyists, corporations, or other special interests. We are confident that this matter will be dismissed.”
Some in the media have speculated that it is possible the complaint originated from a September 2021 complaint by the American Accountability Foundation (AAF).
AAF is a self-identified non-partisan, educational nonprofit that provides “oversight research and fact-checking so Americans can hold their elected leaders accountable.”
Central to AAF’s 2021 complaint was Ocasio-Cortez’s attendance at that year’s Met Gala, an exclusive charitable event supporting the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute.
While the event was charitable, and members of Congress were allowed to attend, tickets for the closed event allegedly cost $35,000. This figure far exceeds the permissible limit for gifts given to congress members.
Ocasio-Cortez notably wore a white dress that featured “Tax the Rich” emblazoned across the garment in red lettering.
AAF’s complaint asserted that Ocasio-Cortez’s attendance violated congressional ethics law because the charitable event was exclusive and run by a for-profit company.
In response, Ocasio-Cortez argued that she had attended in her official capacity as a member of Congress and pointed to other instances in which her colleagues had previously attended.
The Office of Congressional Ethics similarly opened a recent investigation into Rep. Carolyn Maloney’s (D-NY) solicitation for a ticket to the 2016 Met Gala.
Whatever the catalyst, no action will be taken by the ethics committee against Ocasio-Cortez for now, as Wild and Guest announced that the committee’s course of action on the matter would become clearer after the new Congress begins in the next year.
I am so sorry that our elected officials believe that they can receive illegal gifts by calling their representation at an even “official”. There is NO possible cause for attendance at a private corporation event to be considered official in any capacity….unless federal funds were involved in the specific cause for the event.
This should be a CRIMINAL offense, not just a breach with financial repurcussions. Cortez USED the event as a political campaign by her actions and by her intent. It was therefore an unlawful contribution.
We need politicians to be in PRISON for accepting illegal contributions, not just given an internal sanction or monetary fine.
Funny how the bureaucrats passed legislation to forbid pharmaceuticals from even buying our physicians even a sandwich for them to eat during a CE course, implying the physicians would be influenced by a sandwich. I would guess a $31k sandwich would be much more influential to a twenty something with no life experience beyond winning an election.
THIS is what good governance looks like! The Democrats still run this House committee and are investigating one of their own. When was the last time Republicans did this?
No, this is what a sideshow looks like. When the committee actually takes any punitive action more than the usual slap-on-the-wrist, then you can and should highlight it. However given what Charlie Wrangel has sufffered for his misdeeds, I am certainly not holding my breath waiting.
The “sideshows” are yet to come. When the Re”bum”licans take over the House, their only claim to governance I suspect will be the number of hearings they have on Hunter Biden who is not even a member of Congress!!
No but he is the presidents son who has been hustling payouts under the table for his daddy for years and his daddy Joe Liden has been lying like a rug about having had any knowledge and of course the additional conspiring to cover it up using the FBI. Of course the Lie-ber-als don’t want any of this to come out.
So you actually think that the dems were not aware she was going to wear that dress as a political statement? I’m sure it was their idea in the first place. It had to be brought to their attention by the AAF. Now they want it to look like they’re actually doing what they should have already done. Puts that comic relief of Washington, AOC, back in the news.
Chasing down ghosts of the past won’t make a bit of difference to my paycheck; and is otherwise a complete waste of my elected Representative’s time and taxpayer dollars.
Yes, this shines a bright light on the issue and probable mistakes made. So, let’s make sure to correct them and move on, to real problems, like my new dirt bike.
Just make sure to follow the gift rules and the reminder distributed to Federal employees soon after the aforementioned event (if you can find them):
https://search.usa.gov/search?query=gift+rules&affiliate=oge