Through her spokeswoman, Democratic New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez confirmed she is breaking congressional financial disclosure regulations.
On August 13, Ocasio-Cortez was supposed to submit a financial disclosure for 2021 to the House Ethics Committee. No information about Ocasio-Cortez’s financial situation was made public as of Wednesday morning.
A spokeswoman for the left-wing lawmaker claimed Ocasio-Cortez is in no rush to file her declaration as required by federal law. That’s because she has another 20 days before she risks a punishment.
The 30-Day Deadline
Lauren Hitt, Ocasio-Cortez’s director of communications, stated on Tuesday night the committee allows a 30-day grace period before imposing sanctions. The congresswoman intends to do it before the deadline passes.
Communications Director Lauren Hitt said Ocasio-Cortez is in no rush to file her disclosure as required by federal law because she can wait another 20 days before risking a fine. https://t.co/lJUjLAv4hY
— Dylan Rohr (@DylanRohrWI) August 24, 2022
In April, Ocasio-Cortez argued it damages American democracy if politicians are even seen as having behaved illegally with their wealth.
If Ocasio-Cortez is more than 30 days late reporting her financial disclosure, she would be subject to a modest punishment of only $200.
This is not the first time this politician used the grace period to avoid financial penalties by not publicly declaring her financial situation within 30 days.
Ocasio-Cortez avoided punishment from the House Ethics Committee by a hair, filing her 2019 financial statement exactly 30 days late in September 2020.
She is not just a scofflaw, but a habitual offender, according to Paul Kamenar, a counsel for the National Legal and Policy Center, a conservative ethical monitoring group.
Possibility of Insider Trading?
Despite her previous words on her colleague’s finances, Ocasio-Cortez acts cavalierly toward releasing her own finances to the public.
She has frequently demanded that Congress members be barred from engaging in stock trading, arguing even the appearance of them profiting from insider knowledge gained through their positions is a danger to democracy.
Ocasio-Cortez, at a news conference in April, stated lawmakers are also dealing with a crisis of trust in the institutions in the United States; the exploitation of this crisis is a direct danger to democracy, according to her.
Members of Congress should not be allowed to own individual stock.
We are here to serve the public, not to profiteer. It’s shocking that it’s even been allowed up to this point.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) March 20, 2020
She went on to say it is their duty to make sure they never again give the impression of impropriety, as such ideas may be used to undermine the most revered institutions.
At the end of 2020, Ocasio-Cortez said she would have a net worth of between $3,000 and $45,000. No stocks were listed as belonging to her.
Kamenar speculated Ocasio-Cortez’s 2021 revelation would be delayed, due to ethical problems concerning her Met Gala attendance in a designer outfit with the tagline, “Tax the Rich” in September of 2021.
Ocasio-Cortez’s luxury outfit, limo trips, and professional hairdressing charges were all listed as illegal gifts in a complaint the NLPC filed with the Bureau of Congressional Ethics in September 2021.
According to Kamenar, legislators must report all donations they receive, legal or not, on their yearly financial disclosure forms.
After running unopposed in the Democratic primary for New York’s 14th Congressional District on Tuesday evening, Ocasio-Cortez was renominated as the party’s candidate.
Since her area is predominantly Democratic, she is a safe bet to be re-elected this November.
This article appeared in The Political Globe and has been published here with permission.
