Mr. Woodhouse tells us the state GOP was only refunding money Mr. Hastings had previously donated to the party. Mr. Hastings reports receiving a $5000 “party contribution” from the very same organization Mr. Woodhouse runs.

On October 24, 2017, the Kelly Hastings campaign reported writing a check for $5000 to the “NC House Republican Caucus.” Yet, $5000 is being “refunded” to him — according to Mr. Woodhouse — from the coffers of the state GOP.

Yet, in the state board of elections archives, we find documentation for a “North Carolina House Republican Campaign Committee.” You would think Mr. Hastings’s contribution would have been deposited with THAT particular entity. (And “refunded” from there, too.) But, no. The only contribution documented to that group is $2500 from House majority leader John Bell on June 27, 2017.

We can’t find any evidence in the files that any of that money went to any Republican campaigns. In fact, the only documented expenditure for the committee is $1710 to the Charlotte law firm of Parker, Poe, Adams and Bernstein on July 17, 2017.

Even more curious, the House campaign committee’s Q1 2018 report shows a ZERO balance in its bank account between May 26, 2017 and April 21, 2018.

Hmmm. What happened to the money donated by Mr. Bell? Did it get lost between the treasurer’s office and the bank? Also, what happened to the balance that should have been there after paying the $1710 to the Charlotte lawyers?

*Makes you feel good that these guys are managing all those billions of dollars that fuel our state government, eh? *