Congressman spends campaign fund on Steam games
In another politician-related gaming news, the Federal Election Commission (FEC) is questioning Alpine, California Representative Duncan Hunter's use of campaign funds to pay for 68 separate Steam purchases. In his defense, Duncan's spokesperson said these will be paid back, pending the result of a fraud investigation.
The congressman's Steam expenses amounted to a total of $1,302. The purchases, ranging from $5 to as much as $96.30, were made over a two-month period, specifically from Oct. 13 to Dec. 16. Hunter categorized these as "personal expenses - to be paid back" in his campaign finance disclosure for 2015 year-end. However, no payback has been listed as of this writing.
"Campaign funds are to be used for bona fide campaign or political purposes only," the House Ethics Committee website says. "Campaign funds are not to be used to enhance a member's lifestyle, or to pay a member's personal obligations... Members have no discretion whatsoever to convert campaign funds to personal use."
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Hunter admits his son had used his credit card to buy a game from Steam. However, Hunter's spokesman, Joe Kasper, said the Congressman is still trying to reverse most of the charges, which he claims were unauthorized.
"There won't be any paying anything back there, pending the outcome of the fraud investigation, depending on how long that takes," Kasper said, as quoted by The San Diego Union-Tribune.
The FEC is also asking Hunter to explain a Sept. 21 payment of $1,650 to Christian Unified Schools of El Cajon which was tagged as a personal expense to be paid back. Kasper said this was actually a donation that was erroneously listed as personal expense.
On Monday, the FEC sent a letter to Hunter's campaign treasurer asking for explanation on the expenses, amending the filing as necessary, and to reimburse the personal expenses. The commission set May 9 as the deadline for Hunter to respond.
Earlier this week, presidential candidate and businessman Donald Trump was at the center of a copyright claim controversy after a fan-made video making use of Electronic Arts' assets became viral. The video, titled Trump Effect, used music and voiceover from EA's IP, "Mass Effect." The publisher has since caused the videos to be removed. Trump has yet to comment on the issue.
