The complaints filed with the FEC and House Ethics Committee rely mostly on press reports. Dems file ethics complaints vs. Akin

The Missouri Democratic Party on Wednesday filed two ethics complaints against Republican Senate nominee Todd Akin, accusing him of reversing his position on earmarks in exchange for campaign support and illegally coordinating with an outside group.

“We want to know that we have representatives who are not for sale to the highest bidder,” Missouri Democratic Party Chairman Mike Sanders told reporters on a conference call announcing the complaints. “It has the flavor of bribery. It has a flavor of pay for play.”


Akin spokesman Rick Tyler insisted his boss had not flip-flopped on the earmarks issue and characterized the complaints as a “baseless charge” that only served to distract voters from Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill’s voting record.

For years, Akin had been an unabashed defender of earmarks, saying the Constitution allowed Congress — not executive branch bureaucrats — to determine how federal dollars should be spent. But last week, a National Journal story reported that Akin agreed to support an earmark ban backed by tea party Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) and his Senate Conservatives Fund.

McCaskill, too, has partnered with Republicans in an effort to ban earmarks.

The complaints came on the same day DeMint announced he was endorsing Akin, breaking with most in the GOP who deserted the congressman after he made controversial remarks about “legitimate rape.” DeMint’s backing paves the way for the fund to put its money behind Akin, though it hasn’t officially done so yet.

The complaints filed with both the Federal Election Commission and House Ethics Committee rely mostly on press reports. In the House complaint, Democrats allege Akin engaged in a quid pro quo with DeMint’s fund, changing his position on earmarks in exchange for political support. The FEC complaint alleges Akin had solicited illegal contributions by violating the soft money ban and had illegally coordinated with a super PAC on independent expenditures.

“To use the term bribery I don’t think is too strong at all,” Sanders told reporters. “These are fundamentally disturbing actions by Todd Akin.”

At a Monday news conference, Akin told reporters there had been staff-level conversations between his campaign and the conservatives fund. But Tyler clarified that the campaign was only responding to questions about Akin’s position on earmarks and that there was no quid pro quo.

“This is designed to distract the voter from McCaskill’s irresponsible voting record on Obamacare, the trillion-dollar stimulus which utterly failed, a vote for TARP, a vote to raise the debt ceiling,” Tyler said in a phone interview. “That’s what she doesn’t want the voter to know about.”

Tyler said Akin’s position on earmarks has remained consistent. He supports spending measures that go through the normal legislative process and opposes non-germane earmarks that are secretly tucked into bills in the dead of night, without any chance for lawmakers to digest or debate them.

“Todd has always been cautious about earmark bans,” Tyler said, “because he does not want to give up Congress’ constitutional authority and allow money to be overseen by executive branch bureaucrats.”