Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) got embarrassed after the House Ethics Committee exposed her for violating the House “Gift Rule” at the 2021 Met Gala, where she flaunted her ironic “Tax the Rich” dress. According to the report, she accepted free admission for her fiancé, underpaid for accessories, and delayed payments until the investigations forced her to pay what she owed.
For context, AOC was fined $2,983.28 for her actions, following a nearly five-year-long investigation. This case emphasizes Cortez’s hypocrisy, for preaching about socialism while she enjoys an elite lifestyle at taxpayer expense.
In any case, the scathing report blasted AOC’s unlawful actions. It read, “Despite Representative Ocasio-Cortez’s significant attempts, the Committee found that she failed to fully comply with the Gift Rule by impermissibly accepting a gift of free admission to the 2021 Met Gala for her partner and by failing to pay full fair market value for some of the items worn to the event.”
Explaining the size of the illegal gift given to AOC, the report stated, “Although tickets to the Met Gala were sold for $35,000 each that year, with proceeds benefiting the Met’s Costume Institute, Representative Ocasio-Cortez and Mr. Roberts received free admission to the event.”
As quoted in the report, AOC attempted to defend her attendance at the star-studded event. She whined, So I didn’t know in terms of how it was structured if we were paying each vendor individually, if it was Brother Vellies covering the cost and then us — you know, of all of these things because we hadn’t shared, or, you know, same provider, same vendor and that we were reimbursing them.”
Claiming ignorance, she continued, “I also was under the impression it was the latter, that we were reimbursing Brother Vellies for the cost, but I really did not know the details at the time of how things were itemized.”
In another statement, the controversial congresswoman maintained her ignorance. She declared, “I just never, ever, ever would have allowed that to happen, knowing what I have learned. But I wasn’t privy to the invoices, wasn’t privy to the ones that had been sent.”
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However, Mike Casca, AOC’s Chief of Staff, attempted to defend her actions and cast the scandal as an honest mistake. He stated, “The Congresswoman appreciates the Committee finding that she made efforts to ensure her compliance with House Rules and sought to act consistently with her ethical requirements as a Member of the House. She accepts the ruling and will remedy the remaining amounts, as she’s done at each step in this process.”
Another staffer said that there was some confusion between renting and buying the designer dress AOC wore to the event. The staffer said, ” I mean, we would go back and forth on comparing items to what she saw on Rent the Runway, and that was a big comparison for [Former Campaign Staffer], which, you know, could be a little offensive if I was [Designer]. Like, stuff is not intended to be on Rent the Runway. This is very different, very different.”