Questions remain over $816,000 in Rick Perry mansion money
Illegal to use campaign contributions for personal use
HOUSTON — Rick Perry continues to evade questions about an ethics complaint filed against him by a government watchdog group for spending more than $816,000 in campaign contributions on his rental mansion without itemizing the expenses.
The response from Perry’s team to date has essentially been, "Trust us, everything is fine."
"Questions raised about $816,000 in mansion spending need answers. If Perry wants to claim he’s not breaking the law, then he needs to prove it," said Katy Bacon, campaign spokesperson
Texas Ethics Commission rules are clear. It is illegal to convert campaign contributions for personal use, and itemizing expenses is required so that the public can determine if politicians are funneling their campaign contributions into items for personal use.
"It’s time for Rick Perry to open up the books on his secret rental mansion expenses so Texans, his political donors and prosecutors know exactly how Perry’s funding his lavish lifestyle," said Katy Bacon. "Day after day, we see that Perry is only looking out for himself, and he will do anything to continue to fund his fancy travel and extravagant rental mansion."
Rick Perry has already been caught funneling hundreds of thousands of dollars in corporate cash through a non-profit run out of the Office of the Governor to fund his personal travel. Since 2001, Rick Perry’s political campaign has funneled over $816,000 into what they call "mansion expenditures."