Report: Rand Paul spent donor money on trips abroad, clothes shopping

Darcy Costello | Courier Journal

This story has been updated with a comment from Rand Paul.

Sen. Rand Paul spent hundreds of donor dollars on shopping trips and thousands on meals, travel and other expenses abroad, according to a report from nonpartisan watchdog groups released this week.

The spending was funneled through a political leadership committee, which are meant to enable lawmakers to donate to other political campaigns to secure leadership positions. But, according to the "All Expenses Paid" report, they're often used to fund "lavish lifestyles on their donors' dimes."

Paul, Kentucky's junior senator, spent $11,043 at restaurants in Italy and Malta last year through his leadership PAC, Reinventing a New Direction, according to the report.

In the same year, he spent $4,492 on limousine services in Rome and $1,904 on a hotel in Athens that boasts "breathtaking panoramic views."

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His PAC, known as RAND PAC, also spent $337 on apparel at a Nebraska Men's Wearhouse, $438 on apparel at a shoe store on Madison Avenue in New York City, $201 at TJ Maxx and $1,575 at a restaurant in the Trump Hotel.

In a statement sent Saturday, Paul defended his expenses, saying they were part of fundraising efforts for his leadership PAC

“This week I defended the President’s foreign policy against the establishment of both parties," Paul said. "I was rewarded with a left wing attack story about overseas spending. The truth is, I’m probably one of the only senators who has never traveled at taxpayer expense, and all trips taken were for fundraising and made money for RANDPAC.”

His expenses likely aren't against the law. They do, however, illustrate his use of political contributions for expenses that don't fall squarely in the realm of donations to other campaigns.

Paul is also highlighted in the report for his lower-than-average contributions to other candidates or committees. The report says less than 7 percent of his expenses over the past three election cycles have gone to others, according to figures from the Center for Responsive Politics. On average, 45 percent of lawmakers' leadership PAC spending goes toward such donations.

The Center for Responsive Politics shows that in the 2018 cycle, Paul's contributions to other candidates constitute 15.6 percent of spending from his leadership PAC.

The "All Expenses Paid" report, from Issue One and the Campaign Legal Center, both nonpartisan nonprofits, calls for changes to the leadership PAC fund regulations, arguing that such dollars are being abused with personal expenses by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.

"Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle have raised and spent millions from their leadership PACs. In doing so, they blur the lines between official and personal activity while schmoozing at venues far beyond the eyes, as well as the pocketbooks, of most of their constituents," the report said.

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Paul spokeswoman Kelsey Cooper said the PAC's expenses are for political or fundraising purposes, not personal. And she added that travel expenses are covered by the PAC "to save taxpayer funds."

"We chose to finance travel this way to save taxpayer funds, rather than at taxpayer expense as nearly every other elected official does," she said.

Every stop paid for through the PAC "included fundraising events with Americans overseas and expenses for the donor events," Cooper wrote in the statement. She added that Paul's been active on issues of interest to Americans living abroad.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky's senior senator, was not named in the report, which focused on egregious expenditures or some of the leadership PACs that spend the least on contributions to other candidates.

Other Kentucky lawmakers mentioned in the report:

U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers

Rogers' leadership PAC, Help America's Leaders PAC, known as HALPAC, paid $70,317 to the Pebble Beach Company, which manages Pebble Beach Resorts on the Northern California coast.

It also spent $86,616 from 2013 to 2016 on Churchill Downs tickets, according to the report and figures from the Center for Responsive Politics.

The expenses were in conjunction with official fundraising events, spokeswoman Danielle Smoot wrote in an email Friday evening. Rogers has held annual events at the Kentucky Derby and Pebble Beach for "many years" to raise funds for the leadership PAC.

Rogers' wife, Cynthia Rogers, was paid a total of $22,000 in 2016 by his leadership PAC for "PAC event planning services." Smoot wrote that she performs several administrative functions for the PAC and that it is "completely compliant with federal law."

She added that future disbursements to state and federal candidates are expected before the elections in November.

"HALPAC donors believe in the Republican platform and trust the Congressman to support other state and federal candidates who share their values," Smoot wrote in an email.

U.S. Rep. Andy Barr

Barr's PAC, Building America's Republican Representation, spent $18,654 in 2015 on tickets from Breeders' Cup Limited, host of the Breeders' Cup World Championships.

A spokesman for Barr did not return a call and an email seeking comment.

Darcy Costello: 502-582-4834; dcostello@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @dctello. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: www.courier-journal.com/darcyc.