Watchdog: Rep. Stevens broke ethics rules in scream fest
Remember Haley Stevens’ totally unhinged scream fest on the House floor last week? Turns out she did a little more than come unglued.
By attempting to fundraise off the failed PR stunt, Stevens also broke House ethics rules, according to a new complaint filed by a nonpartisan citizen watchdog group with the Office of Congressional Ethics.
Unhinged and unethical? That’s Haley Stevens.
In case you missed it…
Watchdog argues Michigan Dem violated House ethics rules by fundraising off controversial floor speech photo
Fox News
Sam Dorman
March 31, 2020
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/watchdog-haley-stevens-house-ethics-violation
A government watchdog group argued Tuesday that Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., violated congressional ethics rules by trying to fundraise off a photo showing her speaking from the House floor in a now-viral address that included pink gloves and shouting about the coronavirus response.
The Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT) filed an official complaint with the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE), arguing that she inappropriately used government resources and her official capacity to solicit campaign donations.
“The ethics rules explicitly prohibit Members from using House floor photographs for campaign purposes and soliciting campaign contributions tied to votes,” FACT Executive Director Kendra Arnold said in a press release. “It is important these laws are followed and enforced to protect taxpayers and ensure every vote is taken on its merit and not for political gain.”
The email in question, which came from her campaign’s email account, begins with a photo of Stevens holding the microphone while wearing her pink gloves. “Hello from the Capitol,” a banner reads. It highlights how Stevens voted for the coronavirus relief package that made its way through Congress last week.
“I’m reaching out to make one thing clear: Help is on the way,” the email read. “We will not let you fall through the cracks. We will get through this together.”
At the bottom of the email, Stevens appeared to try and capitalize on the backlash she faced for yelling on the House floor. “Republicans are already attacking Haley for passionately speaking out for her district, calling her ‘unhinged’ and ‘crazy’ for demanding that we listen to public health experts and support working families.”
Stevens was ruled out of order by a Democratic representative who was presiding over the proceedings that day.