As the House Ethics Committee looks into the possibility of Representative Steven Palazzo misspending over $200,000 in campaign funds, Palazzo’s office believes that the matter “should be dismissed” during the first quarter of 2021.
“Congressman Palazzo looks forward to fully cooperating with the Ethics Committee during its review and plans to show that he has followed the Ethics Rules of the House of Representatives and that this matter should be dismissed,” spokesperson Colleen Kennedy said.
Kennedy also added that former Mississippi congressman and member of the Ethics Committee from 2009 until 2013 Gregg Harper will be representing Palazzo when he goes before the panel.
“Congressman Palazzo has hired former Congressman Gregg Harper, an attorney who served two terms on the Ethics Committee during his ten years as a member, to represent him before the Committee,” she continued.
In September, the Ethics Committee received notice that Palazzo may be misusing thousands in campaign dollars, and then this past Thursday, the panel released a statement saying that Chairman Ted Deutsch of Florida and ranking Republican member Kenny Merchant of Texas have “decided to extend the matter regarding Representative Palazzo.”
The Committee will not take any further action until the 117th Congress takes office on January 3, however, some politicians in Mississippi, including Joey Fillingane and Dane Maxwell, have already begun entertaining the idea of running for Palazzo’s seat if it were to open as a result of the investigation.
