Taxing the Rich May Cost AOC — But No Word From House Ethics Panel

It was all glitz and glamour for U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., as she attended the Met Gala in Manhattan back in September of 2021.

Accepting the invite, however, may cost the congresswoman known as "AOC" dearly — if the House Ethics Committee ever addresses the nine-month-old complaint about her.

Within a day of Rep. Ocasio-Cortez's appearance at the event, the American Accountability Foundation (AAF) filed a complaint with the House Ethics Committee.

According to the complaint, AAF "believe[s] Representative Ocasio-Cortez has violated clause 5 of Rule XXV of the Rules of the House of Representatives [commonly known as the Gift Rule]"

The complaint went on to detail that AOC had no exemption to accept this gift, which costs upwards of $50,000 per ticket.

Nine months later, the House Ethics Committee has yet to acknowledge AAF's request and whether or not they are investigating the matter.

When Newsmax reached out to the House Ethics Committee Chief Counsel and Staff Director, Tom Rust, declined to comment.

Even if the Empire State lawmaker took some of her campaign funds to pay for the lavish night, AAF argues, "she has also violated FEC [Federal Election Commission] prohibitions on campaign funds being used for entertainment purposes."

AOC responded that attending the star-studded night is a part of her official duties as a Member of Congress, which, according to AAF, means that "the receipt of the gift must fall under the widely-attended event or charity event exemptions as defined in House Rule 25.5(a)(4)."

This being the case, AAF contests that neither of the two categories for exemptions hold true in this case because the Met does not decide who goes to the event. The Met grants a for-profit company, specifically Conde Nast, and — more specifically, its Chief Content Officer, Anna Wintour — with the decision of who receives a ticket.

When Newsmax asked Tom Jones, Founder of AAF, about the Ethics Committee's refusal to take action so far or even comment on the AOC affair, he said: "The House Ethics Committee's silence begs that question: who's protecting AOC, and why is the Democrat-controlled Congress turning a blind eye to a potential ethical violation? A prompt investigation and enforcement of Congressional Rules is something American taxpayers deserve from their elected officials. More transparency in Washington is needed, not less."

Micah Hart, a Newsmax intern, is studying politics and journalism at Hillsdale College in Michigan.