Democrat Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-PA) is suspiciously silent after reports came to light that he used taxpayer funds to pay the monthly parking fees for his private plane.
Cartwright, who is worth up to $10.9 million, pays $425 every month to the Delaware River and Bay Authority, which operates the New Castle Airport in Delaware. As the Washington Free Beacon reported, that monthly price matches the airport’s advertised “small hangar” monthly storage price.
The monthly payments to the Delaware River and Bay Authority were marked on Cartwright’s financial disclosures as “Taxi/Parking/Tolls” and “District Office Parking,” despite the airport being outside his congressional district.
Cartwright’s office did not respond to the Free Beacon’s multiple requests for comments seeking clarification about the monthly payments.
Although using taxpayer funds to pay for his private plane’s storage may be legal, it runs contrary to his self-described image as a politician who has “spent his entire career sticking up for working people.”
Cartwright, the five-term congressman whose net worth has more than doubled since taking office, is no stranger to questionable ethics. For example, according to the Free Beacon, Cartwright omitted the limited liability company he used to purchase his $180,000 private plane from his personal financial disclosure.
Cartwright has also been the subject of numerous complaints filed by congressional ethics watchdog organizations. Last month, the Functional Government Initiative filed an ethics complaint against Cartwright after the congressman appeared in a television commercial for a law firm run by one of his donors that appeared to be filmed in his official taxpayer-funded congressional office.
“Using your official office to film a commercial for a top donor’s law firm is not a ‘misunderstanding.’ It’s unethical. FGI intends to file an ethics complaint against @RepCartwright,” the group wrote.
However, Cartwright ultimately sent the law firm a cease-and-desist letter demanding they stop using his image in their advertising.
The Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT), which dubbed Cartwright one of the “worst ethics violators of 2019,” raised concerns about the congressman’s recent visit to General Electric’s (GE) research facility. According to Federal Election Commission filings, General Electric has given Cartwright’s campaign nearly $10,000 since December 2015.
However, his most recent financial disclosures showed that Cartwright holds up to $15,000 in GE stock.
Cartwright’s visit to the GE research campus came just one week after President Joe Biden signed the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) Act, which Cartwright supported. That law is meant to boost semiconductor production, which would likely impact GE as they are a semiconductor consumer and part of the Semiconductors in America Coalition.
“Anytime a Member takes official action that could impact their personal finances, it raises conflict of interest concerns,” FACT executive director Kendra Arnold told Breitbart News. “Given his specific position in Congress and stock holdings, there are legitimate concerns.”
Cartwright, whose seat is targeted by the National Republican Congressional Committee, faces a fierce challenge from Republican Jim Bognet, who narrowly lost to Cartwright in 2020.
Bognet ripped Cartwright after reports revealed he paid penalties and interest after being late on property taxes for his Washington, DC, condo.
“So typical of the liberals,” Bognet told Breitbart News while adding the Democrats’ thought process is, “Taxes are for other people. Let’s raise taxes on other people and hire IRS agents when we don’t even pay our own taxes.”
Jordan Dixon-Hamilton is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jdixonhamilton@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter.
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