Feds: Congressman Duncan Hunter used campaign cash for affairs

Rep. Duncan Hunter illegally used campaign funds to finance romantic flings with lobbyists and congressional aides, spending thousands of dollars on meals, cocktails and vacations, federal prosecutors say.

Details about the married Republican congressman’s alleged affairs were outlined in a government court filing late Monday connected to charges filed last year that Hunter and wife Margaret illegally spent more than $250,000 in campaign money on trips and personal expenses, including airfare for the family’s pet rabbit.

Hunter, of Alpine, represents a district that includes about two-thirds of Temecula.

Hunter’s wife, Margaret Hunter, pleaded guilty this month to one count of corruption. She also agreed to testify against her husband. Duncan Hunter’s trial is set for September.

The conservative congressman, one of the first House members to endorse then-candidate Donald Trump four years ago, has said he is the target of politically motivated prosecutors. His lawyer, Gregory Vega, didn’t immediately respond to a message seeking comment about the new court filing.

Prosecutors said including evidence about the congressman’s alleged affairs is necessary because it demonstrates Hunter’s “intent to break the law and to establish his motive to embezzle from his campaign.”

In one case, prosecutors said Hunter was romantically involved with a lobbyist and began staying at her home and sometimes using campaign funds to buy food and beverages.

In January, 2010, Hunter flew to Reno, Nevada, ostensibly to attend a convention for a nonprofit group. After a brief stop at the convention, Hunter and the lobbyist headed for a ski resort near Lake Tahoe, where they spent the weekend skiing and ordering room service, according to the filing.

Prosecutors said Hunter used campaign funds to rent the car, pay the hotel tab and fly back to Washington.

“The intimate nature of these relationships is … an essential element of the crimes charged in the indictment,” the document said.

The “sequence of romantic liaisons is so far removed from any legitimate campaign or congressional activity as to rebut any argument that Hunter believed these were proper uses of campaign funds,” prosecutors added.

Despite facing a federal indictment, Hunter was re-elected to represent California’s 50th Congressional District last year, albeit by a narrower margin than in years past. The GOP holds a 12 percentage point edge in the district’s voter registration.

In an emailed statement, Ammar Campa-Najjar, a Democrat challenging Hunter in 2020 said Hunter “betrayed voters and family by illegally using campaign funds and the power of his office to initiate inappropriate relations in the workplace.”

“This is yet another sad example of the stain Congressman Hunter has left on this district,” said Campa-Najjar, who lost to Hunter in 2018.

“It’s time for the people of California’s 50th to finally have a congressperson who puts their needs ahead of his own.”

Other candidates, including Temecula Councilman and Republican Matt Rahn, have filed papers to run in Hunter’s district.

Hunter could still serve in Congress even if he’s convicted, although the House could vote to expel him. Former GOP congressman Darrell Issa, who represented parts of San Diego and Orange counties until 2019, is rumored to be interested in Hunter’s seat if Hunter resigns or doesn’t seek re-election

Hunter, who was stripped of his House committee assignments following his indictment, also has made headlines in recent weeks for statements he’s made about his service as a Marine artillery officer in Iraq and Afghanistan.

In May, he said he posed for a photo with the corpse of an enemy combatant and that many U.S. service members had done the same thing. He’s also said that his artillery unit “probably killed hundreds of civilians” in Iraq.

Hunter’s comments came in the context of his ongoing defense of Eddie Gallagher, a Navy SEAL chief accused of killing an enemy prisoner in 2017.

The portion of Temecula not represented by Hunter is in the district of Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Corona.

“As I’ve said before, Duncan has a constitutional right to due process in a court of law,” Calvert said in an emailed statement. “In addition to the legal process, Duncan is also accountable to the constituents he represents.”

Riverside County Republican Party Chairman Jonathan Ingram said his party hasn’t taken an official position on Hunter.

“We are allowing due process to take its place,’ said Ingram, a Murrieta councilman. “You’re innocent until proven guilty in this country.”

Bob Kowell, president of the Murrieta Temecula Republican Assembly, said that if Hunter’s innocent, “he should fight the fight.”

But Kowell added that he could see a scenario on which he’d prefer that Hunter step aside.

“If you know you’re guilty, help us Republicans win that seat. Do the right thing.”