Charlie Crist for U.S. Senate: Speaker Rubio Distorts The Truth About His Unethical Spending In Fox News Sunday Debate
TALLAHASSEE – The Charlie Crist for U.S. Senate campaign today released the below statement from Governor Crist from this morning’s debate in response to Speaker Rubio’s continued, deliberate distortion of the facts surrounding his unethical spending habits:
“It’s very important the people that put themselves up for public office understand that they are asking for the trust of those individuals they’re asking to vote for them. The Speaker just misspoke yet again. He said all these things have been accounted for. There are $34,000 in expenses from that $600,000 slush fund that have not been accounted for. We don’t know where the money went. We don’t what happened to it. And the Speaker won’t tell us. He claims that it’s all accounted for that these allegations are not true. They’re absolutely true….He’s utilized funds double dipping, as you mentioned earlier, for plane flights. Thousands of dollars where he billed the taxpayers of Florida, he also billed the Republican Party of Florida. Only after he was caught, did he take the steps – at least he’s told us he has – to go ahead and re-pay the Party, I thought he should have re-paid the taxpayers, that’s who he worked for. It’s a real simple difference.”
Below is a point-by-point, documented fact-check of the Speaker’s most recent distortions:
Speaker Rubio’s Distortion On His Unethical Spending On Fox News Sunday
CHRIS WALLACE: There are allegations that you double billed the state and also the Party for various expenses. Your response?
SPEAKER RUBIO: Well, first of all. Those allegations are false. … Here are the facts. The facts are that this is not tax payer money. It was raised for the purposes of political advancement for advancing a political agenda and that’s what the money was spent on. Now there were some occasions where we had some personal expenses, which I identified and I made payments on out of my own pocket at the time those expenses were made. All this money’s been accounted for.
The FACTS About Speaker Rubio’s Unethical Spending
Rubio Distortion #1: “this is not tax payer money”
Rubio Admits To Double-Billing State Taxpayers. “U.S. Senate candidate Marco Rubio admitted Friday that he double-billed state taxpayers and the Republican Party of Florida for eight plane tickets when he was speaker of the Florida House.” (St. Petersburg Times/ Miami Herald, Beth Reinhard, Scott Hiaasen and Adam C. Smith, “Marco Rubio: Double-billing of flights ‘a mistake’,” 2/27/10)
“Rubio Said The GOP Paid For All Travel When He Served As Speaker In 2007 And 2008. But Records … Show That Eight Flights From South Florida To Tallahassee Were Also Billed To The State.” “On Wednesday, in response to questions from The Miami Herald and St. Petersburg Times about his party credit card, Rubio said the GOP paid for all travel when he served as speaker in 2007 and 2008. But records released to The Herald/Times Thursday afternoon show that eight flights from South Florida to Tallahassee were also billed to the state.” (St. Petersburg Times/ Miami Herald, Beth Reinhard, Scott Hiaasen and Adam C. Smith, “Marco Rubio: Double-billing of flights ‘a mistake’,” 2/27/10)
Rubio Distortion #2: “It was raised for the purposes of political advancement for advancing a political agenda and that’s what the money was spent on.”
Speaker “Rubio Charged Grocery Bills, Repairs To The Family Minivan And Purchases From A Wine Store … to the Republican Party of Florida.” “U.S. Senate candidate Marco Rubio charged grocery bills, repairs to the family minivan and purchases from a wine store less than a mile from his West Miami home to the Republican Party of Florida while he was speaker of the Florida House, according to records obtained by The Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times.” (The Miami Herald, Beth Reinhard and Scott Hiaasen, “Marco Rubio charged personal bills on GOP card,” 2/24/10)
Speaker Rubio Charged Six Flights For His Wife To The Party, Even When She Didn’t Fly. “Rubio also booked six plane tickets for his wife using the card. It was unclear how many, if any, of those trips his wife actually took; in some instances, she did not fly and Rubio was credited by the airline.” (The Miami Herald, Beth Reinhard and Scott Hiaasen, “Marco Rubio charged personal bills on GOP card,” 2/24/10)
Speaker Rubio Billed The Party For A Campaign Junket To New Hampshire. “The majority of the expenses on Rubio’s card covered travel costs as he trekked across the state and the country in his dual role as House speaker and party leader. Rubio visited Orlando, St. Petersburg and Pensacola, flew to New Hampshire in 2008 to campaign for Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, and went to the party’s national convention that year in Minneapolis.” (The Miami Herald, Beth Reinhard and Scott Hiaasen, “Marco Rubio charged personal bills on GOP card,” 2/24/10)
Speaker Rubio Identified At Least $1,265 In Personal Expenses Billed To The Party Between March And November 2008, … But Rubio Repaid Only $982.” “Rubio has identified at least $1,265 in personal expenses billed to the card between March and November 2008: $1,024 in charges from a Tallahassee property management company, and $241 for a flight to Las Vegas after a relative’s death. But during that eight-month period, Rubio repaid only $982 toward the credit card, the records show. Rubio’s campaign would not provide a list of all the personal expenses he repaid.” (St. Petersburg Times/ Miami Herald, Beth Reinhard, Scott Hiaasen and Adam C. Smith, “Marco Rubio: Double-billing of flights ‘a mistake’,” 2/27/10)
Rubio’s Committee Was Supposed To Support Candidates, But He Only Spent $4,000 On Candidates While Nearly $150,000 On So-Called Administrative And Operating Costs. “So Rubio did what many aspiring Florida legislative leaders do — he created a political committee, Floridians for Conservative Leadership, to ‘support state and local candidates who espouse conservative government policies,’ according to IRS records. But for 2003, the committee spent nearly $150,000 on administrative and operating costs and $2,000 in candidate contributions. Over 18 months, only $4,000 went to candidates other than Rubio, while similar political committees gave tens of thousands of dollars to candidates.” (St. Petersburg Times/The Miami Herald, Adam C. Smith, Beth Reinhard and Scott Hiaasen, “A Lavish Rise For Rubio,” 3/12/10)
Rubio Used His Committees To Pay Relatives Thousands Of Dollars. “One committee paid relatives nearly $14,000 for what was incorrectly described to the IRS as ‘courier fees’ and listed a nonexistent address for one of them. Another committee paid $5,700 to his wife, who was listed as the treasurer, much of it for ‘gas and meals. … Rubio’s second political committee also paid $3,500 to his mother-in-law’s company for rental car services …’” (St. Petersburg Times/The Miami Herald, Adam C. Smith, Beth Reinhard and Scott Hiaasen, “A Lavish Rise For Rubio,” 3/12/10)
Rubio Distortion #3: “Now there were some occasions where we had some personal expenses, which I identified and I made payments on out of my own pocket at the time those expenses were made.”
Speaker Rubio’s Personal Expenses Were Covered By The Party. “His campaign said Friday it had not identified any additional expenses that need to be repaid. The credit card records, however, indicate that at least some of Rubio’s personal expenses were covered by the party.” (St. Petersburg Times/ Miami Herald, Beth Reinhard, Scott Hiaasen and Adam C. Smith, “Marco Rubio: Double-billing of flights ‘a mistake’,” 2/27/10)
Rubio Failed To Pay Off Bills Every Months And “The Party Picked Up His Late Fees Several Times.” “Rubio has declined to itemize personal expenses for which he reimbursed the state party. And Rubio’s credit card statements show that, in fact, he did not always pay off the bills every month. There was at least one six month period when he did not pay, and the party picked up his late fees several times.” (St. Petersburg Times’ Buzz Blog, “Marco Rubio denies $130 hair cut,” 3/4/10)
Rubio Made No Payments To His Card During A Six-Month Stretch, Leaving The Party With The Bills. “Records show Rubio sent payments to American Express totaling $16,000 for his personal expenses during his tenure as House speaker. But those payments were not made monthly. He made no contributions to the bill during a six-month stretch in 2007, records show.” (The Miami Herald, Beth Reinhard and Scott Hiaasen, “Marco Rubio charged personal bills on GOP card,” 2/24/10)
Rubio Distortion #4: “All this money’s been accounted for.”
Rubio Has Not Answered If He Paid Interest On The Payments And Late Fees The Party Picked Up For Him. “But for those fortunate enough to carry Republican plastic, even reimbursement is painless. During one stretch, Rubio went six months before covering his own expenses. Whether he paid any interest or late fees is one of many unanswered questions facing his busy spokesperson.” (The Miami Herald, Carl Hiaasen, GOP offer even a liberal couldn’t refuse,” 2/27/10)
“Rubio’s Campaign Could Not Find Records To Explain … These Expenses.” “Rubio’s campaign could not find records to explain many of these expenses Wednesday night.” (The Miami Herald, Beth Reinhard and Scott Hiaasen, “Marco Rubio charged personal bills on GOP card,” 2/24/10)
Rubio Failed To Disclose $34,000 In Expenses. “Rubio failed to disclose $34,000 in expenses — including $7,000 he paid himself — for one of the committees in 2003 and 2004, as required by state law.” (St. Petersburg Times/The Miami Herald, Adam C. Smith, Beth Reinhard and Scott Hiaasen, “A Lavish Rise For Rubio,” 3/12/10)
Rubio Reimbursed Himself Thousands Of Dollars Without Detailing What For. “Rubio spent the biggest chunk of the committee’s money, $89,000, on political consultants, $14,000 in reimbursements to himself, and more than $51,000 in credit card expenses. Records show those expenses were for food, lodging and airfare but do not detail who was traveling or where expenses were incurred.” (St. Petersburg Times/The Miami Herald, Adam C. Smith, Beth Reinhard and Scott Hiaasen, “A Lavish Rise For Rubio,” 3/12/10)
Speaker Rubio “Spen[T] Big Money With Little Scrutiny.” “Marco Rubio was barely solvent as a young lawmaker climbing his way to the top post in the Florida House, but special interest donations and political perks allowed him to spend big money with little scrutiny.” (St. Petersburg Times/The Miami Herald, Adam C. Smith, Beth Reinhard and Scott Hiaasen, “A Lavish Rise For Rubio,” 3/12/10)
Rubio Billed More Than $51,000 In Unidentified ‘Travel Expenses’ To Three Different Credit Cards — Nearly One-Quarter Of The Committee’s Entire Haul.” “He billed more than $51,000 in unidentified ‘travel expenses’ to three different credit cards — nearly one-quarter of the committee’s entire haul.” (St. Petersburg Times/The Miami Herald, Adam C. Smith, Beth Reinhard and Scott Hiaasen, “A Lavish Rise For Rubio,” 3/12/10)
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