Rep. Ronny Jackson, who has quite a history of dubious behavior, is under investigation for using campaign funds for an expensive private club membership in a potential violation of campaign finance rules, according to reports released Monday by Congressional investigators. The House Ethics Committee voted unanimously to continue a two-month-old probe into Jackson’s conduct. And it’s not just the Texas Republican, but Rep. Wesley Hunt, too, who used campaign funds at a private club. I’m starting to sense a pattern here.
The Texas Tribune reports:
Jackson spent nearly $12,000 since 2020 on membership at the Tony Amarillo Club, and Hunt spent over $74,000 between April 2022 and January 2024 at the Post Oak Hotel, including membership fees at its exclusive Oak Room club, according to the reports. Federal campaign finance rules allow campaign funds for specific events at private clubs, but not typically for membership or unlimited access.
The Office of Congressional Ethics approved the reports in March, sending them to the House Ethics Committee for investigation. The OCE is made up of nonpartisan professional staffers who recommend ethics inquiries to the House Ethics Committee. The committee has five Republican and five Democratic members of Congress and can recommend sanctions to be voted on by the whole chamber. U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-Texas, is the only Texan on the committee.
Jackon denied the allegations.
Jackson said in his written response to the OCE investigation that he did not violate ethics rules. Hunt provided documents related to his Oak Room expenses, but they were heavily redacted, according to the OCE. He declined to sit for an interview by the office, but his lawyers said he did nothing wrong.
The OCE and Ethics Committee opened a near identical investigation in 2022 into Jackson’s use of campaign funds to pay for Amarillo Club dues. The Ethics Committee never released its findings on that probe — a cue Jackson apparently took to continue using campaign funds on the club.
This doesn’t sound good for Felon 45’s former physician, who ran a pill mill out of the White House.
Via The Independent:
In a press release, Chairman Michael Guest (R-Miss) and Ranking Member Susan Wild (D-Penn) said the panel was continuing to review the matter of Jackson’s alleged violations but would not make any further public comments while the investigation remains ongoing.
The announcement of the continued probe into Jackson — who in July 2022 was demoted to the rank of Captain by the Navy after a probe into his conduct while he served as the head of the White House Medical Unit and the physician to presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump — comes after the Office of Congressional Ethics said there is “substantial reason to believe” that he violated “House rules, standards of conduct, and federal law” by using funds donated to his campaign committee on personal expenses.
Ronny and his wife are both members of the Churches of Christ, and no one is surprised. I wonder if his wife knows about his excursions to that fancy pants club.
