The California Republican
spent months claiming he was the victim of a "witch hunt" before
saying Monday he would plead guilty
Monday, December 02, 2019
Government watchdogs on Monday
called for Rep. Duncan Hunter's immediate resignation after it was
reported that the California Republican would change his "not guilty"
plea to "guilty" in the case of his alleged campaign finance violations.
Hunter told KUSI
Newsin San Diego in an exclusive interview which aired Monday that he
plans to plead guilty on Tuesday to using $250,000 in campaign funds for
personal expenses and falsifying Federal Election Commission (FEC) records to
conceal the purchases.
The six-term congressman
said he planned to plead guilty to avoid a public trial.
The watchdog group Citizens
for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) said on social media,
"We're glad he'll finally face consequences for his actions," and
called on Hunter to resign.
Hunter was accused of misusing
the funds over a year ago. Like President Donald Trump, who Hunter endorsed
early in the 2016 presidential election, the congressman spent months deriding
the charges against him as a "witch hunt." He won
re-election three months after the allegations came to light.
Hunter's expected guilty plea
will make him the second loyal Trump supporter to admit to committing a felony
in two months. In October, former Rep. Chris Collins (R-N.Y.) pleaded guilty to
insider trading soon after announcing his resignation.
Collins and Hunter were the
first and second members of Congress to endorse Trump, and the president
vehemently defended both against their charges.
Robert Maguire, research
director for CREW, noted that Hunter and Collins are just two Trump allies and
associates now facing criminal charges.
Among Hunter's alleged misuses
of his campaign funds were purchases made in connection with several affairs he
had with lobbyists and congressional aides—violating the congressional code of
conduct. His expected guilty plea comes weeks after the resignation of former
Democratic Rep. Katie Hill, a fellow Californian who stepped
down in October, days after admitting to a romantic relationship with
a campaign aide. Misuse of campaign funds was not included in the accusations
against Hill, who was also the victim of having sexually explicit images of her
released without consent.
Several political observers
pointed out the sharp contrast between Hunter's decision to continue serving in
Congress and run for re-election with the full support of the president, and
Hill's immediate resignation.
Hunter indicated Monday
that he will leave Congress before the 2020 election, telling KUSI that
he "wants his seat to remain in Republican hands and he will try to ensure
a smooth transition."
No comments:
Post a Comment