WASHINGTON, DC – The month of August finds members of Congress on their summer recess. It also found Missouri Democrat Congresswoman Cori Bush on the receiving end of an ethics complaint that alleges she misused government resources for campaign purposes. If true, these actions would be in violation of House rules.
The Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT) filed the complaint with the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE). The filing requested an investigation be opened to determine whether Bush violated ethics standards by actions related to the use of campaign-based social media accounts.
Speaking with Fox News Digital, FACT executive director, Kendra Arnold said, "Representative Bush's abuse of official resources for political purposes shows a flagrant disregard for the law. These laws and ethics rules are in place to maintain the integrity of official proceedings, so members cannot leverage them for political advantage. The violation we have documented in our complaint is clear and obvious, and after confirming through investigation, we hope the OCE moves swiftly to impose the proper penalty."
FACT’s filing specifically detailed that Bush "disrupted official House proceedings with outrageous and unprofessional behavior and then campaigned and fundraised off of it."
The social media post that led to the complaint was posted along with a link to her fundraising campaign for re-election. In that post, Bush can be seen on the floor of the House interrupting House Majority Leader Steve Scalise as he tried to speak. The video used was carried by C-SPAN.
In the rantings, Bush refers to bills as racist. In the tweet, she also called those bills "sexist, patriarchal, xenophobic, classist, homophobic, and transphobic."
The complaint details the issues with the tweet sent out by Bush, saying, "The legal violation in this case is obvious and there are no facts that can excuse it—Bush used official House proceedings and resources for political purposes," the complaint states. "Video of official house floor proceedings is an official resource, and both using it for political purposes and posting it on a campaign social media account are violations of the ethics rules."
The complaint continued, "Video of official house floor proceedings is an official resource, and both using it for political purposes and posting it on a campaign social media account are violations of the ethics rules. It is irrelevant that Bush obtained this video from CSPAN because a Member cannot use official footage even if it is obtained or reposted from another entity. The fact that Bush uses this video on her campaign social media account and directly fundraises off of it shows a complete disrespect for the law."
It remains to be seen whether the OCE will launch a full investigation and whether there will be any actions against Bush or her campaign.
Attempts to get a comment from her office went unanswered.
The Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT) filed the complaint with the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE). The filing requested an investigation be opened to determine whether Bush violated ethics standards by actions related to the use of campaign-based social media accounts.
Speaking with Fox News Digital, FACT executive director, Kendra Arnold said, "Representative Bush's abuse of official resources for political purposes shows a flagrant disregard for the law. These laws and ethics rules are in place to maintain the integrity of official proceedings, so members cannot leverage them for political advantage. The violation we have documented in our complaint is clear and obvious, and after confirming through investigation, we hope the OCE moves swiftly to impose the proper penalty."
FACT’s filing specifically detailed that Bush "disrupted official House proceedings with outrageous and unprofessional behavior and then campaigned and fundraised off of it."
The social media post that led to the complaint was posted along with a link to her fundraising campaign for re-election. In that post, Bush can be seen on the floor of the House interrupting House Majority Leader Steve Scalise as he tried to speak. The video used was carried by C-SPAN.
In the rantings, Bush refers to bills as racist. In the tweet, she also called those bills "sexist, patriarchal, xenophobic, classist, homophobic, and transphobic."
The complaint details the issues with the tweet sent out by Bush, saying, "The legal violation in this case is obvious and there are no facts that can excuse it—Bush used official House proceedings and resources for political purposes," the complaint states. "Video of official house floor proceedings is an official resource, and both using it for political purposes and posting it on a campaign social media account are violations of the ethics rules."
The complaint continued, "Video of official house floor proceedings is an official resource, and both using it for political purposes and posting it on a campaign social media account are violations of the ethics rules. It is irrelevant that Bush obtained this video from CSPAN because a Member cannot use official footage even if it is obtained or reposted from another entity. The fact that Bush uses this video on her campaign social media account and directly fundraises off of it shows a complete disrespect for the law."
It remains to be seen whether the OCE will launch a full investigation and whether there will be any actions against Bush or her campaign.
Attempts to get a comment from her office went unanswered.
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