A new report in the Washington Post reveals that Barbara Comstock apparently “breach[ed] congressional ethics rules” when she did not disclose at least $85,000 worth of work for Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign and the Republican National Committee.
In addition to the apparent ethics breach, the Washington Post report also raises several new questions about Comstock’s work as a political operative:
- Who else has Barbara Comstock represented?
- Has Comstock represented clients who do business with the state of Virginia?
- Has Comstock represented clients who do business with the federal government?
- Has Comstock ever taken official action on behalf of a client?
- Did Comstock hide her clients to avoid revealing a conflict of interest with her work as a delegate?
- Is Comstock’s claim that she simply forgot to disclose at least $85,000 worth of work for her clients plausible, given her experience as a professional political operative?
“Barbara Comstock isn’t just breaking ethics rules and falsifying federal disclosure documents – she’s been caught covering up her paying clients while she’s serving as a delegate in Richmond, raising new concerns in this developing scandal,” said David Bergstein of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Comstock has already shown she puts her own right-wing, partisan agenda first, but Comstock’s apparent ethics violation gives Northern Virginians even more reasons to believe Comstock won’t represent their values in Congress.”
Previously, The Hill revealed Comstock’s past as a lobbyist for Koch Industries, a consultant for Blackwater and her role securing hundreds of millions in taxpayer funded contracts for her clients – including one deal that drew bipartisan criticism as a “grossly overpriced sweetheart deal.”