Ethics Complaint

Florida House Democrat Hoping To Unseat Rubio Draws Complaint For Fundraising Tweet

A conservative watchdog group has fired off an ethics complaint against a Florida Democratic congresswoman, claiming she violated regulations by seeking to drum up contributions for her fledgling 2022 U.S. Senate campaign on her official House social media account.

In a letter Monday to the Office of Congressional Ethics, Kendra Arnold, executive director of the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust, or FACT, requested an investigation into Rep. Val Demings of Orlando “for violating House ethics rules that forbid Members from using official taxpayer-funded resources for political purposes.”

Arnold’s letter pointed out that Demings’ official House Twitter account on June 9 featured a direct link to her campaign Twitter account.

“The link to Demings’ campaign is in a pinned tweet, making it the first thing users see upon visiting her official account,” Arnold observed.

She argued that House rules require “strict separation” between campaign activities and official actions.

In short, Arnold wrote, “A Member is prohibited from using official resources for campaign purposes and a Member is prohibited from using campaign funds for official purposes.”

“A Member’s official social media accounts may not include any personal, political, or campaign information, or links to campaign-related accounts or sites,” Arnold continued.

Accordingly, Demings has committed “a clear violation,” Arnold argued.

“This rule enforces an important foundational principle: Members cannot use their official position or taxpayer-funded resources for political gain,” she added. “Moreover, the rule, in this case, is clear and straightforward — a rule Demings is required to abide by.”

Therefore, she concluded, to uphold the public trust and compliance with House ethics standards, “We urge the Board to immediately investigate and stop Representative Demings’ ongoing ethics violation.”

According to the Washington Free Beacon, the tweet remained up on Demings’ Twitter feed from June 9, when she announced her Senate candidacy, until Wednesday when the conservative website contacted her office for comment.

It’s unclear how deleting the tweet may influence FACT’s complaint. Demings seeks to challenge Republican Sen. Marco Rubio in 2022.   

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2 Replies to “Florida House Democrat Hoping To Unseat Rubio Draws Complaint For Fundraising Tweet”

  1. Problem is these people(Dems) NEVER suffer the consequences of their actions

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