Alleged Ballot Fraud and Taxpayer-Funded Lobbyists? House Dems’ Ethics Woes Continue | June 6th, 2013

With the month that President Obama has been having, it’s easy to forget that House Democrats are embroiled in scandals of their own.

Take Joe Garcia, he’s spent the last week in the hot seat after two of his staffers were implicated in an alleged ballot fraud scheme.

From the Miami Herald: “Friday’s precipitous events came three months after a Miami Herald investigation found that hundreds of 2,552 fraudulent online requests for the Aug. 14 primaries originated from mystery hackers using Internet Protocol addresses in Miami. The Herald found those requests were clustered and targeted Democratic voters in Congressional District 26, which stretches from Kendall to Key West and where Garcia was competing against three other candidates.”

Over the weekend, his chief of staff Jeff Garcia resigned, while his communications director Giancarlo Sopo was placed on administrative leave. Why is Garcia standing by one staffer and not the other? Why is Congressman Garcia so afraid to fire Sopo? What does he have on him?

Now, let’s not forget Luis Gutierrez.

USA Today reported this morning that the Chicago congressman paid a lobbyist a half-million dollars in taxpayer funds. Though he was employed as a consultant by Gutierrez’s official office, Chiacgo lobbyist Doug Scofield still represented private clients, included some who sought federal aid from the congressman.

House rules specifically bar members from “procuring consultant services,” however the House Administration Committee confirms that contract for Scofield’s services was approved by the committee.

Yet, time and again, Scofield’s private clients and taxpayer-funded work with Gutierrez repeatedly clashed.

From USA Today:

“In July 2004, Scofield’s company registered a new client, a food bank called the Greater Chicago Food Depository. A year later, the food depository announced in a news release that Gutierrez would observe National Hunger Awareness Day by handing out fruits and vegetables from the group’s new ‘Producemobile.’”

“In 2010, Gutierrez requested that the House Appropriations Committee earmark $620,000 for the Chicago Botanical Garden, according to his congressional website. Scofield listed the garden as a lobbying client for a few months in 2005, and it is still listed as a client on the website of his communication firm.

‘Scofield has also provided some campaign assistance to Gutierrez. In November 2009, Gutierrez’s congressional campaign reported paying the Scofield Co. $9,329 for managing a fundraiser, and in August and September 2012, the campaign paid Scofield $12,000 in “consultant fees” for a “constituency outreach” event.”

These sick Washington games are exactly what voters are tired of.

Join us as we continue to hold these House Democrats accountable for playing fast and loose with ethics rules. Stand with the NRCC today.