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Palin the Plumber; Wardrobe Purchases Violate McCain-Feingold Law!

Palin the Plumber; Wardrobe Purchases Violate McCain-Feingold Law!

Juan Cole 10/24/2008

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Young Turks on Sarah Palin’s $150,000 wardrobe, purchased at Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue out of campaign contributions by the Republican National Committee.

And, “wardrobe-gate” is illegal under the campaign finance law McCain helped write!

‘ SEC. 313. USE OF CONTRIBUTED AMOUNTS FOR CERTAIN PURPOSES.
(a) PERMITTED USES-

…
(b) PROHIBITED USE-

(1) IN GENERAL- A contribution or donation described in subsection (a) shall not be converted by any person to personal use.

(2) CONVERSION- For the purposes of paragraph (1), a contribution or donation shall be considered to be converted to personal use if the contribution or amount is used to fulfill any commitment, obligation, or expense of a person that would exist irrespective of the candidate’s election campaign or individual’s duties as a holder of Federal office, including–

(A) a home mortgage, rent, or utility payment;
(B) a clothing purchase;
(C) a noncampaign-related automobile expense;
(D) a country club membership;
(E) a vacation or other noncampaign-related trip;
(F) a household food item;
(G) a tuition payment;
(H) admission to a sporting event, concert, theater, or other form of entertainment not associated with an election campaign; and
(I) dues, fees, and other payments to a health club or recreational facility.’

Oh, and it occurs to me that the last time Republicans had a big emphasis on plumbers it had to do with breaking and entering and grand theft.

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About the Author

Juan Cole is the founder and chief editor of Informed Comment. He is Richard P. Mitchell Professor of History at the University of Michigan He is author of, among many other books, Muhammad: Prophet of Peace amid the Clash of Empires and The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. Follow him on Twitter at @jricole or the Informed Comment Facebook Page

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