Did Lauren Boebert illegally use campaign funds?: A political action committee accuses the controversial Colorado Congresswoman of illegal campaign spending.
Lauren Boebert Might Be in Trouble
A political action committee has levied an accusation against Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO), accusing the controversial GOP Congresswoman of improper spending.
According to a press release from End Citizens United PAC, the PAC has filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC), claiming that Lauren Boebert illegally spent $60,000 from her leadership PAC on get-out-the-vote activities during last year’s midterm elections.
The complaint is not a criminal case, nor is it an ethics investigation by Congress.
“Congresswoman Boebert used her leadership PAC as a personal bank, but unfortunately for her, this practice is illegal under federal law,” ECU President Tiffany Muller said in the press release. “The timing of the purchases, and the fact that they were made to the same vendor her campaign used, clearly illustrates that she was attempting to bypass federal law in order to either influence her own race or another campaign. The FEC should launch an investigation into this corrupt scheme and hold Congresswoman Boebert accountable.”
Leadership PACs are not supposed to coordinate directly with candidates, and if they do, per the complaint, “the cost of the communication becomes an in-kind contribution to the candidate and counts against the leadership PAC’s $5,000 per-election contribution limit to that candidate.”
Per Insider, Boebert’s campaign has responded by calling the filing a “bogus complaint,” adding that “we are confident there is nothing here and this is another baseless attack.”
Colorado officials had looked into alleged campaign shenanigans by Lauren Boebert before, including in her 2020 campaign.
Citizens United v. FEC was the 2010 Supreme Court decision that the First Amendment does not allow the government to restrict independent expenditures on campaigns, from corporations and other organizations.
End Citizens United describes its mission as “to fix our democracy by getting big money out of politics and protecting the right to vote. We will work to end our rigged political system by electing reform champions, passing meaningful legislative reforms, and elevating these issues in the national conversation.”
Lauren Boebert, in the 2022 election, ran the closest House race in the country, defeating Democrat Adam Frisch, and Frisch is challenging Boebert once again in 2024. Frisch, so far, has outraised his once and future opponent by more than $1 million, with the race expected to be one of the nation’s most closely watched in 2024.
In the meantime, Boebert has continually made the news for controversial reasons. She drew fire last week for holding up a shirt featuring an AR-15 during a campaign visit to a Colorado gun range. The shirt included a picture of that gun and the phrase “Since we’re redefining everything, this is a cordless hole puncher.”
That photo op was posted by Boebert to social media the day after the mass shooting in Texas. In 2021, Boebert had been criticized for wearing a shirt that made light of the on-set accidental shooting in New Mexico in which a gun held by actor Alec Baldwin fired, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
In April, Boebert made news for calling for the defunding of National Public Radio, at a time when Elon Musk was feuding with them.
“I’ve been saying that for quite some time! Let’s get it done!,” Boebert said at the time. Also in April of this year, she blamed Democratic “radicalization” for mass shootings.
“I believe that the left is radicalizing [shooters]. You know, when you’re telling someone, ‘You’re not good enough. You are oppressed. You are the lesser person,” Boebert said in an April interview with podcaster Dave Rubin. “You are the lesser class,’ well then, that’s going to get in inside of them and cause depression and more mental health crises.”
Boebert was part of the “never Kevin” group that opposed the nomination of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, although McCarthy did win the speakership over their objections.
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Expertise and Experience
Stephen Silver is a Senior Editor for 19FortyFive. He is an award-winning journalist, essayist and film critic, who is also a contributor to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. Follow him on Twitter at @StephenSilver.
