The Ocasio-Cortez campaign could have illegally paid her boyfriend: complaint

Rookie Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's campaign may have illegally paid her boyfriend through a political action committee during her congressional race, a Republican group said in a new complaint to the FEC.

The Coolidge Reagan Foundation alleged in its complaint that Brand New Congress PAC paid Ocasio-Cortez's boyfriend, Riley Roberts, for marketing services after the PAC was hired as part of his campaign.

Using the third-party PAC to pay for her boyfriend may have violated campaign financing laws, said a Coolidge Reagan Foundation lawyer at La Poste.

"It's perfectly legal, as a candidate, to hire family members, people you know, who work for you. But they did not do it, "said lawyer Dan Backer.

"Instead of paying him directly, they paid him through an intermediary – in order to conceal the fact that they paid him. The FEC should investigate and determine if this is the case. That's the claim, "Backer added.

The Coolidge Reagan Foundation is asking the FEC to investigate the fact that the campaign contravenes the finance laws which stipulates that contributions to the campaign "will not be converted per person for personal use".

But the PAC that hired Roberts told Fox News, who reported the story, that all payments were legally valid.

"[Roberts] is a professional digital marketing and growth consultant who specializes in social media presence and subscriber engagement, "said a spokeswoman for Brand New Congress PAC in Fox.

"He was hired for a two-month probationary period, starting August 3, 2017, and worked until the end of September 2017," added the spokesperson. "The services provided at the new PAC conference included advertising strategies that fostered potential growth, developing indicators, and helping to execute a strategy to increase brand awareness for the company." the entire CAP. "

The office of Ocasio-Cortez did not respond immediately.