Friday, May 25, 2012

Texas Watchdog: Congressional candidate Robert ‘Beto’ O’Rourke - who criticized opponent Reyes’ campaign payments to family - has paid own family/business $22K

Congressional candidate Robert ‘Beto’ O’Rourke - who criticized opponent Reyes’ campaign payments to family - has paid own family/business $22K

The scathing report detailing the payments of U.S. Congress members to families was a gift to Robert “Beto” O’Rourke, a former El Paso city council member and Democratic challenger to U.S. Rep. Silvestre Reyes in the far West Texas 16th congressional district.

The
investigative study found that Reyes spent campaign funds on his own reimbursement for expenses related to his campaign in 2008, as well as feathering his own family nest with payments to relatives for fundraising, travel expenses and political contributions. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington compiled the report.

"This shows that Reyes is working for himself, his family and those close to him," O'Rourke
told the El Paso Times. "It makes it more clear than ever that we need reform in Washington, D.C. He paid his brother, Chuy. He paid himself. He paid his niece. He paid his niece's husband. The whole family was involved."

Reyes defended his expenditures, saying that he was pleased to have family that could help him. Which means apparently that he thinks such a practice is fine.


But while O’Rourke was speaking about reform in Washington, he forgot to mention his own payments to his business and family members of $22,800.

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