http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/allegations-against-indicted-house-republican-get-even-worse?fbclid=IwAR0On46I9klWMyhmZHBG0ludEQFfJQdVAaAAM4Du0kJRWn1r910yJ_cLFsM
"As a rule, when people talk about politicians being in bed with lobbyists, the rhetoric isn’t intended to be taken literally. There are exceptions. Justice Department prosecutors alleged on Monday that Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) used campaign contributions to have multiple extramarital affairs, including a $1,000 ski vacation with a female lobbyist. According to the court filing, Hunter started using the campaign funds to “carry out a series of intimate relationships” with five women soon after he first entered office in 2009. The first woman (“Individual 14”) was a lobbyist. For about three years, Hunter dipped into his campaign contributions to pay for a couple’s ski getaway (which cost more than $1,000), a road trip to Virginia Beach, and hotel stays, according to prosecutors. TPM’s report added that the Republican congressman’s alleged relationship with the lobbyist ended in 2012 – he’d been married for roughly 14 years at the time – though prosecutors have accused Hunter of having four other affairs over the course of the four years that followed. Donors allegedly picked up the tab for expenses related to each of the relationships. While these claims against the indicted GOP lawmaker will still need to be proven in court, the allegations do help contextualize matters a bit. In case anyone needs a refresher, the GOP congressman and his wife were charged last summer, and the criminal indictment was quite brutal: federal prosecutors alleged that the Hunters stole more than $250,000 in campaign funds and used the money to pay for personal purchases, ranging from trips to school tuition to dental work to veterinary care. As if that weren’t enough, the Hunters allegedly went to great lengths to cover up the scheme: according to prosecutors, they made fraudulent claims that their purchases were for charities, including veterans’ charities. A Washington Post report added that the prosecutors’ allegations “read like a caricature of a corrupt, greedy politician"."
