Once again some people did something – and it’s all about the Benjamins.
From the 2019-2020 election cycle, Ilhan Omar’s campaign paid nearly $2.8 million to the consulting firm E Street Group, which is co-owned by her husband. In the third quarter of 2020 payments to the group accounted for 70% of total disbursements.
While her husband was being enriched by Omar’s campaign donors, we the taxpayer were unknowingly giving him a helping hand too.
According to the New York Post: “Tim Mynett’s E Street Group LLC was given $134,800 this year as part of the Paycheck Protection Program; he was also given $500,000 in Economic Injury Disaster loans.”
They further note regarding Omar’s relationship with her husband’s firm:
The FEC allows lawmakers to hire family members or spouses to work on their campaigns, but a political ethics expert said the practice creates suspicion and should be banned. Omar has denied any wrongdoing regarding her relationship with her husband when ethics questions were raised about payments to his firm earlier this year.
Omar cut professional ties with Mynett in mid-November while still denying any wrongdoing, according to Fox News. The announcement, which came in the form of an email to supporters, was aimed to end speculation about their work.
Before the Omar campaign cut ties with E Street Group, they were the group’s single biggest client.
Omar had previously been ordered to reimburse her campaign $3,500 after the Minnesota Campaign Finance Board found she illegally used campaign funds in 2016 and 2017. She was also fined $500. The violating payments included reimbursements for personal travel expenses, in addition to hiring a law firm for services related to an inquiry into her personal tax returns.
Soon-after she was hit with an FEC complaint in late August for allegedly using her campaign to illegally reimburse the travel expenses of Mynett (before they were married). The complaint was filed one day after Mynett’s wife alleged he was having an affair with Omar. Travel expenses totaled over $21,000 and were not itemized, which is required.
