The House Ethics Committee announced on Monday that it is investigating Rep. Nancy Mace over allegations that she improperly received more than $9,000 in reimbursements from the federal government over a two-year period.
The probe was opened after a formal referral from the Office of Congressional Conduct, a nonpartisan panel tasked with investigating allegations made against sitting members of Congress.
As part of its referral, the OCC made public its report on the matter, which alleges Mace took advantage of a House program to help lawmakers pay for their Washington residences by filing expenses for utilities and taxes that did not match the bills.
“The OCC identified discrepancies between the amounts requested and received by Rep. Mace for reimbursement and the total of these associated bills,” the report said. “Rep. Mace’s counsel represented to the OCC that Rep. Mace was responsible for all of the DC Property’s expenses during the time period at issue. However, because Rep. Mace declined to interview with the OCC in this review, the OCC was unable to confirm the extent of Rep. Mace’s financial obligations with respect to the DC Property.”
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In a response to the OCC dated mid-December and released publicly Monday, Mace’s legal representative claimed that her ex-fiancé, Patrick Bryant, who she has since separated from and accused of abuse, was responsible for her finances during the time period in question.
Mace’s four-page response goes on to suggest that the OCC was influenced by “Bryant’s false narratives and spurious characterizations.”
“Certain expense figures, payment descriptions, and alleged discrepancies closely mirror claims Bryant began advancing after the end of the relationship and are inconsistent with the Congresswoman’s fundamental understanding of her obligations during the period at issue,” the response said. “These patterns cannot be reconciled with the broader financial realities of the arrangement between the parties and therefore raise significant concerns about the provenance of the information the OCC relied upon.”
In a statement to NOTUS, Mace said she doesn’t take the investigation seriously and accused the OCC’s chief counsel, Omar S. Ashmawy, of “beating women.” Ashmawy was accused of verbally and physically abusing several young women in a 2017 civil suit that was ultimately settled before going to trial.
“An accused woman-beater is the source of the complaint. An accused woman-beater ran the investigation,” the statement said. “They ignored the evidence. More so, Rep. Mace is a federal whistleblower against her accuser.”
“Congress should seriously examine whether a partisan OCC that retaliates against women and ignores its own evidentiary standards deserves to exist at all,” Mace’s statement to NOTUS continued.
Mace did not comment directly on the allegations of improper reimbursements or if she would rectify the improper payments should the OCC’s charges be proven.
Mace, who is currently running for governor of South Carolina, has maintained her place in the political spotlight since earning her House seat in 2020. Some of her more fringe beliefs and her confrontational approach have strained her relationship with other Republicans in Congress.
In November, the congresswoman was caught on video yelling at security staff at the Charleston International Airport and has since come under scrutiny for her increasingly erratic behavior.
“I’m not crazy,” Mace told Politico Magazine in a recent feature. “I’m in a great place. I’m a lot better than I’ve been in a long time.”
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