WASHINGTON â€" Representative Michelle Bachmann, Republican of Minnesota, is the subject of an ethics investigation examining allegations of wrongdoing that emerged in the aftermath of her failed bid for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012, a lawyer for the lawmaker confirmed Monday.
The inquiry by the Office of Congressional Ethics â€" a quasi-independent agency that acts like a grand jury to address allegations of wrongdoing by House lawmakers and their staff â€" follows claims by her former campaign aides that Ms. Bachmann may have improperly used money raised by one of her House-affiliated political action committees to assist her presidential efforts in advance of the Iowa presidential caucuses in January 2012.
Peter Waldron, a Florida evangelical organizer who once served as national field coordinator of Ms. Bachmann’s presidential campaign, is among those who raised the accusations, which he also brought to the Federal Election Commission, The Minneapolis Star Tribune reported in January.
Separately, a former Iowa staff member for Ms. Bachmann has accused her campaign of stealing a database of names and e-mail addresses of Christian home-school families in Iowa, a matter that has reportedly resulted in a criminal complaint in Iowa.
William McGinley, a lawyer at Patton Boggs, a prominent Washington firm, said on Monday in a statement that an investigation by the Office of Congressional Ethics is underway, as had first been reported by The Daily Beast. But Mr. McGinley said he is confident it will be concluded without any findings against Ms. Bachmann.
“There are no allegations that the congresswoman engaged in any wrongdoing,†Mr. McGinley said in his statement, adding that he and Ms. Bachmann are “constructively engaged†with the investigators on the Office of Congressional Ethics, as he is convinced it “will conclude that Congresswoman Bachmann did not do anything inappropriate.â€
At a minimum, the Congressional Ethics inquiry demonstrates the messy aftermath of Ms. Bachmann’s failed presidential bid. She has been the subject of continued disputes by her former campaign aides that have hurt her reputation among conservatives, particularly in Iowa.
The fact that Congressional Ethics is examining the matter suggests that allegations involve at least someone on her House congressional staff, if not the lawmaker herself. The Office of Congressional Ethics does not have the jurisdiction to look into claims of wrongdoing if they only involve political staff members not on the government payroll; its jurisdiction is limited to the operations of the House of Representatives itself.
Still, the acknowledgment by her attorney that a review by Congressional Ethics is underway does not mean that any charges will be filed. In many cases, allegations are reviewed by the Congressional Ethics staff and then dropped, even before the matter becomes public.
Typically, such investigations only become public after the Congressional Ethics staff has found convincing evidence of wrongdoing and recommended that the House Ethics Committee â€" which has the power to advocate punishment of lawmakers â€" looks into a matter.
In Ms. Bachmann’s case, the Ethics Committee has not received a referral, one official on Capitol Hill said Monday, suggesting that Congressional Ethics has not yet concluded if there is probable cause to recommend a formal ethics investigation.
Spokesmen for Congressional Ethics and the House Ethics Committee declined to comment Monday.
