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March 5, 2023

AOC investigated by House Ethics Committee for allegedly accepting ‘impermissible gifts’ at Met Gala

By Rajan Laad

A few days back, the House Ethics Committee announced that it extended its investigation into Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, aka AOC, for a possible violation of congressional rules.

This probe began last December following recommendations by the nonpartisan Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) board in June 2022.

The OCE found “substantial reason” to believe that AOC “accepted impermissible gifts” at the Met Gala in 2021 where she wore that infamous white dress with “Tax the Rich” scrawled across the back in red.

The OCE report revealed that AOC was provided with the dress, a handbag, shoes, and jewelry for the event and payments for hair, makeup, and transportation services from her hotel room to the gala. Key excerpts from the report are as follows:

…despite various efforts to address compliance concerns in advance of the Met Gala through counsel, and despite representations to the Committee regarding compliance with House rules, it appears several thousands of dollars’ worth of services may have remained unpaid absent the OCE initiating this review.

…payment for these goods and services did not occur until after the OCE contacted her (AOC) in connection with this review.

The report cited House rules, House Gift Guidance, Committee Precedent, and even federal law, including 5 U.S.C. § 7353(a), which states that:

...no Member of Congress...shall solicit or accept anything of value from a person—

  1. seeking official action from, doing business with, or (in the case of executive branch officers and employees) conducting activities regulated by, the individual’s employing entity;

or

  1. whose interests may be substantially affected by the performance or nonperformance of the individual’s official duties.

The NY Post reported that Janna Pea, an executive at the far-left PR firm BerlinRosen, designer Aurora James, and the Brother Vellies brand behind the couture gown failed to cooperate in the probe.

As expected, AOC took no responsibility for her actions, nor did she apologize.

AOC followed maneuvers from the Clinton and Obama playbook.

Like Clinton and Obama, AOC blamed everyone but herself and crawled toward victimhood.

AOC told the Office of Congressional Ethics that she just saw documents about the unpaid invoices the day before they met.

“I just never, ever, ever would have allowed that to happen knowing what I have learned,” she told investigators,

“But I wasn't privy to the invoices, wasn’t privy to the ones that had been sent.”

Whenever Obama was in trouble, he would make general statements and join the criticism of the catastrophe as if he were a media commentator and was not to blame. Obama knew that the media would glorify it as a moment of introspection.

AOC called it “a deeply regrettable situation” and claimed to feel “terrible for especially the small businesses that were impacted.”

AOC blamed a campaign staffer who no longer works for the congresswoman. Knowing AOC, she may claim she sacked her staffer because she has ‘zero tolerance for ethical violations.’ The socialist who claims to stand for the persecuted minorities had no hesitation in scapegoating her staffer. So how has AOC been with the less fortunate, apart from her campaign staffer?

AOC refused to side with the exploited workers of Amazon’s Staten Island distribution center who were attempting to unionize. But when they did successfully unionize AOC attempted to take credit.

AOC ardently supports extreme gun control measures for citizens. But for herself, she spends thousands of dollars and has armed bodyguards; obviously, it is taxpayer money.

AOC supports defunding the police who protect regular citizens. For herself, she demanded around-the-clock police protection around the Capitol Building following the January 6th protests.

Back to the MET gala.

The event was occurring just yards from where the NYPD was arresting “defund the police” protesters — a cause that AOC claims to support. 

But AOC was busy posing before cameras and enjoying luxuries at the party where tickets are priced from $35,000 to $50,000 while tables go from $200,000 to $300,000.

There was no reason for the AOC to be there, as it wasn’t going to benefit her constituents. But AOC allegedly used her campaign as an expense account to pay for her indulgences. This is corruption.

The “Tax The Rich” line on the dress was clearly an afterthought, so she can claim that her attendance at the gala was an act of protest. This gives her a basis to claim she is protesting against income inequality and hence attending the event was part of her work.

It could be argued that the stunt may have backfired.

Had AOC not posed in that dress to receive so much attention, there probably would never have been a probe. There are myriad other instances of corruption in D.C. that never receive any attention.

Perhaps it was overconfidence.

Her previous amateur publicity stunts, in which AOC specializes, seem to have worked.

In 2019 AOC posed before a chain link fence and appeared to be shedding tears over “caged” children of illegal aliens. Eventually, it was revealed that she was merely posing before a parking lot fence for the cameras.

Last year, AOC and others were briefly detained outside the Supreme Court following protests against the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. But AOC claimed to have been arrested and she even held her arms behind her back and wrists close to one another before cameras to give the impression she was handcuffed.

Also last year, AOC claimed that she had found a unique method of displaying her commitment to the ‘resistance’ by ‘redoing her nails’. AOC claimed she grew up in a socially conservative and religious household where women wearing red nail polish and lipstick were “frowned upon”, hence she was opting for red to signal support for abortion access.

AOC is also an expert at claiming victimhood and blaming her failures on systemic sexism, racism, misogyny, etc.

Don’t be too surprised if she implies that the Met Gala probe was also driven by bigotry. She could claim that White men couldn’t tolerate a woman of color at the prestigious gala and that her “Tax the Rich” protest made everyone uncomfortable and hence she was targeted.

AOC will not receive any punitive measures; at worst it could be a fine.

AOC may be an object of mockery among some, but she does have a loyal base. She understands her voters, particularly the younger ones very well. She knows they conflate her statements and her amateur stunts with action. She knows they will never evaluate her record in Congress but rather her videos on social media. They probably think of her as a compassionate selfless revolutionary socialist.

Hence AOC will be reelected to the House for as long as she wants and someday she could become Speaker of the House. She could also become Senator or Governor of New York. Maybe she decides to run for the White House instead where she could win.

AOC’s attendance at the MET gala and reluctance to pay for her luxuries are not anomalies, but a norm in the entitled quarters of D.C.

AOC is being probed because she was reckless and blatant; the rest find legal means of corruption and do it from within the shadows.

Image: YouTube screen grab.

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