One-term Congressman Madison Cawthorn, a Trump sycophant, is in financial and possibly legal trouble, too. According to The Daily Beast, Cawthorn spent donor money meant for his general campaign during his primary campaign, which is a big no-no. The North Carolina Republican's campaign reportedly spent money "egregiously," with frequent trips to Chick-fil-A ($1,500.00 for bigot burgers), nearly $3,000 at a venue called Papa's Beer, three separate charges at a high-end fancy pants cigar shop, and $21,000 for lodging in Florida.
Oh, there's more. His campaign also reportedly spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in sky-high consulting and fundraising fees, including for Cawthorn's friend and campaign manager, Blake Harp, who was drawing a salary beyond federal limits, the outlet reports.
Via The Daily Beast:
Cawthorn couldn't raise money to offset this burn rate, which was so high that, by May 5, the campaign had just two percent of the $3.7 million it had raised since January 2021. In truth, the source said, the campaign had been forced to tap its general election account months ago.
Federal election laws allow candidates to raise money for the primary and the general election at the same time. But candidates can't spend the general election funds unless they win the primary first. If you don't win, you have to repay those donors.
Jordan Libowitz, communications director for Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, told The Daily Beast that there's not much wiggle room, and Cawthorn will likely face consequences.
The outlet reports that Cawthorn owes his donors $220,080.85, but his campaign has a little more than $137,000 on hand and owes $325,000 in debt.
Guys, I'm starting to think that the whole 'drain the swamp' thing was a lie. And now, there's no money left to pay the donors back. This isn't very law and order-y of Cawthorn.
