She remains one of the most controversial figures in Washington, so when Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) comes under fire for major violations, people—at least the Conservative side of the aisle—pay attention.
This from thepatriotjournal.com.
This time, the claim doesn’t come from an opposing Republican leader. Instead, it comes from the House Office of Congressional Ethics, and it seems they’ve got evidence.
This could lead to a formal punishment of some kind for AOC [but let us not hold our breath].
A while back, Rep. Ocasio-Cortez turned heads at the 2021 Met Gala, where she showed up sporting “Tax the Rich” emblazoned in red across the backside of her white dress.
She got plenty of criticism, from politicians, journalists, celebrities, and financial experts.
The latter were quick to point out that “tax the rich” has never worked, and we already tax the rich more heavily than most countries.
But—read on, this gets much better—it seems AOC has another reason to regret wearing the dress.
From Fox News:
The House Office of Congressional Ethics found ‘substantial reason to believe’ that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., improperly accepted gifts in the form of tickets during her appearance at the 2021 Met Gala.
A report from the Office of Congressional Ethics states that Ocasio-Cortez was accused of accepting ‘impermissible gifts associated with her attendance at the Met Gala in 2021’ which may have violated House rules, standards of conduct and federal law.
According to the House report:
Rep. Ocasio-Cortez was given the dress, handbag, shoes, and jewelry.
She also got:
[H]air, makeup, transportation, and ready-room services.
Now, it clarifies that AOC eventually paid for the rental value of the dress, as well as the other goods and services that she and her partner received.
However:
[T]hat didn’t happen until after the OCE contacted her in connection with this review.
In other words:
[W]hen she found out she was in trouble, she quickly paid to get off the hook.
Had there been no probe, critics say it’s likely Ocasio-Cortez would’ve never had to pay a dime.
Additionally, the ethics office says AOC may not ever have paid:
[F]or several thousand dollars’ worth of goods and services provided to her.
That too would be a direct violation.
Council for AOC, David Mitrani, released a statement saying there was no violation, and that the OCE only identified:
[T]hat there were delays in paying vendors for costs associated with the Met Gala.
He’s saying Rep. Ocasio-Cortez had always intended to pay for all the gifts—that she never planned to avoid the expense.
But many aren’t buying that explanation. They point toward other examples of politicians clearly not paying for all sorts of items and services, and living very cushy lives on the strength of their office.
A report came out last year that said AOC was suddenly worth over $30M, for example, and citizens have many questions concerning that number as well.
Is it too hard to imagine that our elected officials are able to become wealthy and powerful in amazingly short periods of time?
Final thoughts: What are the odds the two-tiered system of in-justice—Ethics Committee-Schmethics Committee—will amount to anything with this “slight” impropriety?
