She may be the darling of the far-left, but she could be in for some trouble.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is fond of showcasing any and all perceived injustices of her political opponents but it seems she may need to get her own house in order.
Now, a House committee has some bad news for AOC’s far-left fans.
According to a statement released Wednesday, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee.
The committee announced that the Office of Congressional Ethics forwarded an inquiry to the Ethics Committee on June 23, 2022.
This suggests that the Office believes Ocasio-Cortez violated the House Ethics rules.
🚨BREAKING: AOC is under a House Ethics Investigation pic.twitter.com/FFHfinqFJm
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) December 7, 2022
According to the statement, Acting Chairwoman Susan Wild (D-PA) and Acting Ranking Member Michael Guest (R-MI) “jointly decided to extend the matter regarding Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, which was transmitted to the Committee by the Office of Congressional Ethics on June 23, 2022.”
The statement continued, “The Committee notes that the mere fact of a referral or an extension, and the mandatory disclosure of such an extension and the name of the subject of the matter, does not itself indicate that any violation has occurred, or reflect any judgment on behalf of the Committee.”
At the moment it isn’t known what the focus of the investigation into Ocasio-Cortez was, but several ethics watchdog organizations filed complaints against Ocasio-Cortez after the congresswoman attended the Met Gala last year.
At issue is “an impermissible gift” to attend 2021’s Met Gala, which she did not pay to attend, even though tickets for the event ranged from $35,000 to $50,000.
House ethics rules prevent members from accepting gifts, except if they fall under certain exemptions like “widely attended events” or charity functions.
The American Accountability Foundation wrote, “Specifically, we believe Representative Ocasio-Cortez has violated clause 5 of Rule XXV of the Rules of the House of Representatives (commonly known as the Gift Rule) by accepting admission to the Met Gala, an event whose per seat costs is reported to range from $35,000 to $50,000, without having a permissible exemption to allow the acceptance of the lavish gift.”
Other watchdog groups reached similar conclusions.
In response to the complaints, Ocasio-Cortez Spokeswoman Lauren Hitt said, “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.”
AOC isn’t the only member of the “Squad” to face ethics scrutiny.
Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar infamously hired her then-boyfriend and now-husband (yeah) as a campaign vendor for her 2018 election, possibly violating rules that prohibit members from using campaign funds for personal use.
Stay tuned to Blue State Blues for more updates to this ongoing story.
