The Office of Congressional Ethics on Thursday released an update to the investigation into Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
The Committee said there is “substantial reason to believe” AOC “accepted impermissible associated with her attendance at the Met Gala in 2021” that violated “standards of conduct and federal law.”
AOC was under investigation for accepting an “impermissible gift” to attend the Met Gala.
“Specifically we believe Representative Ocasio-Cortez has violated clause 5 of Rule XXV of the Rules of the House of Representatives (commonly known as the Gift Rule) by accepting admission to the Met Gala, an event whose per seat costs is reported to range from $35,000 to $50,000 without having a permissible exemption to allow the acceptance of the lavish gift,” the American Accountability Foundation wrote last year.
“If Representative Ocasio-Cortez has used campaign funds to pay for this ticket, she has also violated FEC prohibitions on campaign funds being used for entertainment purposes,” they added.
Recall, AOC attended the Met Gala last year and donned a “Tax the Rich” mermaid gown.
Two separate ethics complaints were filed against Alexandria Ocasio Cortez for her appearance at the $30,000 per ticket Met Gala.
AOC threw her staffer under bus and blamed the aide for not paying the “several thousand dollars’ worth of goods and services.”
The congressional aide, who no longer works for AOC, took the blame.
“I think the delay there for me was I didn’t have access to her personal credit card at that moment,” the staffer told House ethics investigators, according to Fox News.
Fox News reported:
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., blamed a member of her staff for not paying the “several thousands of dollars’ worth of goods and services” for her attendance at the 2021 Met Gala.
The House Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) opened an investigation into whether Ocasio-Cortez violated House rules by improperly accepting gifts at the Met Gala, but the congresswoman claimed she was unaware and proceeded to let a staff member take the blame.
While speaking to investigators, Ocasio-Cortez said that she was unaware of unpaid expenses related to the dress she wore and stylists that helped her get ready for the Met Gala in 2021. “I just never, ever, ever would have allowed that to happen knowing what I have learned,” she said. “But I wasn’t privy to the invoices, wasn’t privy to the ones that had been sent.”
“And it is just a deeply regrettable situation,” Ocasio-Cortez continued. “I feel terrible for especially the small businesses that were impacted.”
The Ocasio-Cortez staffer, who reportedly is no longer working for the congresswoman, took responsibility for the unpaid dues.
“I think the delay there for me was I didn’t have access to her personal credit card at that moment,” the staffer told House ethics investigators.