FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Matt Gaze, [email protected]
FORMER FEDERAL PROSECUTOR WILL ROLLINS CALLS FOR INVESTIGATION INTO REP. KEN CALVERT FOR APPARENT MISUSE OF TAXPAYER DOLLARS
Rep. Ken Calvert Allegedly Used Taxpayer Funds to Pay for Self-Promotional Mailers Shortly Before June 2022 Election
PALM SPRINGS, CA — Former Federal Prosecutor and Democratic congressional candidate Will Rollins today called for an investigation into Rep. Ken Calvert for blatantly abusing his franking privileges and violating U.S. House of Representative rules by using taxpayer funds to pay for political mailers promoting himself within 60 days of the general election.
Members of Congress are allowed to distribute mass mailings to their constituents at taxpayer expense touting their legislative records (“franked” mail), but not within 60 days of an election. Nevertheless, Rep. Calvert sent thousands of pieces of “franked” mail to residents across Riverside County in early May of 2022, in which Calvert claimed that he was “making Washington work” and invited voters to “sign up for [his] eNewsletters.” The mail – at taxpayers’ expense – came approximately one month before the June 7, 2022 primary election.
Will Rollins, a former federal prosecutor and Democrat who is running against Ken Calvert, issued the following statement:
“Unfortunately, none of this is surprising given Rep. Calvert’s history of using our tax dollars for personal gain. The irony is that he abused his franking privilege to claim that he supports law enforcement, even though he voted against additional federal funding for our local police departments in Riverside County just last year. You can’t call yourself pro-law enforcement if you’re pro-corruption.”
The alleged franking violation is just the latest example of Rep. Calvert’s reported ethical lapses and uses of taxpayer funds for personal gain:
- Rep. Calvert has been named one of the most corrupt members of Congress by the non-partisan group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington
- Rep. Calvert was reportedly investigated by the FBI over his connections to an influential lobbying firm
- Rep. Calvert bought a vacant parcel of land near a freeway and then earmarked $10 million dollars in taxpayer money to build a freeway exchange and commercial development nearby. He then sold the land a year later and made $435,000 in profit, nearly double what he paid.
- Rep. Calvert admitted to having sex with a sex worker in his car, trying to flee from police, and lying about it.
- Just last year, Rep. Ken Calvert’s campaign may have violated House ethics rules by making improper payments to a staffer.
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