FACT Calls for Investigation into Rep. Ruben Gallego for Linking Official Legislation to Campaign Fundraising
Washington, D.C. --- July 28, 2023 --- Today, the non-partisan ethics watchdog the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT), filed a complaint requesting the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) investigate Congressman Ruben Gallego of Arizona to determine whether he solicited campaign contributions linked to official legislative action.
The House Ethics Manual states: “[N]o solicitation of a campaign or political contribution may be linked to an action taken or to be taken by a Member or employee in his or her official capacity.” Members are advised “that they should always exercise caution to avoid even the appearance that solicitations of campaign contributions are connected in any way with an action taken or to be taken in their official capacity.”
Despite these rules, Congressman Gallego sent a campaign fundraising email that identified specific legislation he introduced and asked for readers to “support this critical legislation” by clicking a link. The link leads to a webpage with a plea for a campaign donation at the bottom of the webpage. Legislation is a prime example of something that cannot be directly linked to a campaign contribution solicitation.
“Congressman Gallego sought a campaign contribution while naming a specific piece of legislation. This type of fundraising not only erodes public confidence in our elected officials, who should only be acting on merit, but it also appears to be a violation of the ethics rules. My hope is the OCE recognized the importance of enforcing this rule, and investigates and takes action in this case,” said Kendra Arnold, Executive Director of FACT.
A full copy of FACT’s complaint can be found HERE.
FACT is a nonprofit organization promoting accountability, ethics, and transparency in government and civic arenas. For more on FACT, visit: http://www.factdc.org
###
コメント