Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) has long been one of Donald Trump’s most devoted supporters in Congress, always willing to defend the failed one-term former president no matter what he says or does.
But it now appears that Jordan may have decided to emulate his political idol by engaging in highly illegal behavior by hiding nearly $3 million in campaign contributions from federal authorities, according to a startling report from The Daily Beast:
“This week, the campaign committee for Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), received ten notices from the Federal Election Commission flagging discrepancies on its books totaling nearly $3 million dollars, and dating back over two years. The campaign claims that the errors slipped through the cracks amid a record fundraising surge, and that it actually has more money on the books now, but experts say that the dollar amount — errors totaling some $2.87 million — may trigger an FEC investigation.
“The errors also appear connected to newly developed, largely hidden payment systems in the murky world of Republican digital advertising, where vendors not only receive direct spending, but take cuts from fundraising as well.”
The FEC has given Jordan until April to respond to their inquiries, making it clear that if the congressman’s campaign refuses to comply, an audit or other “enforcement action” will be the penalty.
Experts on campaign finance law said the amount of money not reported by Jordan is certain to trigger some form of severe pushback from the FEC.
Brendan Fischer, director of reform at the Campaign Legal Center, noted:
“Jordan’s campaign appears to have had systemic reporting problems over multiple years, and these amendments represent substantial shifts in the campaign’s disclosed fundraising and spending. I suspect that the FEC will closely review discrepancies of such a significant amount.”
Brett Kappel, campaign finance attorney at Harmon Curran, said he expects an audit of Jordan will be coming in the very near future:
“The legal standard to trigger an FEC audit is high: Whether filings meet the threshold for ‘substantial compliance’ with the law. Jordan’s FEC reports were so substantially incorrect over such a long period of time that they may meet the standard.”
Asked for comment on the FEC letters and investigation, campaign spokesperson Kevin Eichinger rattled off what sounded like gobbledegook:
“The campaign’s cash balance is actually higher than previously listed on the campaign finance reports. The error occurred when the former campaign treasurer inadvertently double-reported certain fundraising expenses. When the error was discovered, the campaign hired an outside expert to conduct a comprehensive audit and file the appropriate amendments.”
Jim Jordan, much like Donald Trump, appears to be a crook. Seems most Republicans these days are.
