North Carolina Rep. Madison Cawthorn has been having a rough time lately. Earlier this year, Cawthorn lost his primary election to GOP challenger Chuck Edwards after a series of scandals.
These scandals included being nabbed in airports multiple times for trying to take loaded firearms through security checkpoints and being caught driving with an invalid license more than once.
Cawthorn also landed in hot water for claiming his lawmaker colleagues invited him to attend orgies. When the GOP congressman was pressed to provide names, he ultimately couldn’t do so.
Lately, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy claimed Cawthorn told him in confidence that his claims about orgies were ultimately fabricated.
Aside from these issues and other sources of controversy, Cawthorn’s time in the House of Representatives is coming to an end. However, he now stands accused of unlawfully spending campaign funds, per Washington Examiner.
What to Know About the Latest Cawthorn Scandal
Cawthorn’s issue with campaign funds ultimately boils down to money for his primary and general election races. Legally, US politicians are allowed to raise funds for their primary and general elections at the same time.
However, the catch is that the money raised for primary elections can only go to primary elections; the same principle applies to funds used for general elections.
NEW: Madison Cawthorn reportedly owes several hundred thousand dollars to reimburse donors for money he illegally spent during his failed primary campaign — but he’s BROKE.
Enjoy your Saturday!
— Jon Cooper (@joncoopertweets) July 23, 2022
This means that candidates are not permitted to use primary election funds for general elections or vice versa, unless they’re willing to pay this money back.
Unfortunately for Cawthorn, he was low on campaign money amid carrying serious debt. Therefore, the outgoing congressman opted to use general election funds to boost his primary race, which he did not win.
This now has Cawthorn in the position of having to pay back donors, something which he reportedly isn’t capable of doing.
What Comes Next?
At this moment, it remains to be seen if any legal action will be taken against Cawthorn racking up a tab he can’t pay.
Meanwhile, his campaign treasurer recently resigned, leading the congressman to step in and assume this aide’s duties. A representative for the North Carolina Republican has yet to speak out about the accusations that stand against him.
NEW:
Madison Cawthorn owes Republican campaign donors over $220,000 that he spent illegally
And he’s gonna have pay it out of pocket
— THE SAD TRUTH (@SmnWeekly) July 23, 2022
It remains to be seen if Cawthorn will employ any efforts to return the money he owes. However, this latest string of scandals is a reminder to Cawthorn’s critics of why they’re not in his fan club.
On Twitter, detractors of Cawthorn are accusing him of theft and saying he should be held legally accountable for it accordingly.
What are your views concerning the use of Madison Cawthorn’s campaign funds? Do you believe the congressman will find a way to pay back this money? In the comments area, please share your predictions with us.
