Politics

Feds say Rep. Hunter used campaign money for extramarital affairs

In a flurry of motions by prosecutors and lawyers for indicted Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA), government attorneys submitted to a federal judge a number of examples of how Hunter allegedly used money contributed to his campaign to instead pay for romantic outings with a series of women who were not his wife.

"Shortly after he arrived in Washington, Hunter began to use funds contributed to the Duncan D. Hunter for Congress Campaign to carry out a series of intimate relationships," a new document filed on Monday detailed for a federal judge.

"At trial, the evidence will demonstrate that Hunter improperly used campaign funds to pursue these romances wholly unrelated to either his congressional campaigns or his official duties as a member of Congress," prosecutors said in a 'statement of facts.'

Stating there was a 'voluminous nature' of evidence against Hunter, the document set out an image of a Congressman who had affairs with lobbyists and Congressional staffers, paying for their meals, trips, and nights on the town with campaign funds.

"In March 2010, for example, the couple took a weekend “double date” road trip to Virginia Beach with their friends, one of whom was also a congressman. Hunter spent $905 in campaign funds to pay for the hotel bar tab and room he shared with (Individual-14) that weekend," the documents related.

The documents listed evidence about Hunter's relationships with:

+ Individual 14 - a lobbyist,

+ Individual 15 - a staffer who worked in the office of a member of the House leadership,

+ Individual 16 - a staffer in his Congressional office,

+ Individual 17 - a lobbyist,

+ Individual 18 - a lobbyist.

The court submission sometimes left little to the imagination, as it noted Hunter engaging in "intimate personal activities" with these individuals, which was not related to his campaign or duties as a lawmaker.

The release of the information by prosecutors came as lawyers for Rep. Hunter asked the judge in the case to exclude a number of pieces of evidence, as Hunter has alleged he is the victim of a political persecution.

"The investigation of Congressman Hunter by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California began shortly after his public endorsement of candidate Trump," Hunter's lawyers wrote in one of a series of evidence challenges, alleging that two prosecutors involved in the case were supporters of Hillary Clinton.

"Any explanation the Government gives now for initiating the investigation of Congressman Hunter should be viewed with total

skepticism through the lens of their attempts to cover up the partisan political activities of the prosecutors that initiated the investigation," lawyers for Hunter added.