Do better ABC13.
ABC13 of Houston ran a bullshit “investigative” story titled “Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo spent about $43K on Paris trade mission, per campaign report“. For those who read only the title of a story to form an ignorant opinion let me give you a heads up. It’s a bullshit title, but an accurate article, if and only if you take the time to read. Here is a snippet:
Judge Hidalgo used donations to her political campaign to fund the trip. “The rules are very flexible on how the office holders can use their funds, just so long as they’re publicly disclosed,” said Jonathan Neerman, a campaign finance advisor who previously served as the Chairman of the Dallas County Republican.
Yep even a Republican says the title of the investigation is bullshit. Candidates and elected officials can use their campaign cash for official business. Many do it then submit receipts to the State, County, or City for reimbursement. And at least one, former State Representative Joe Driver, a Republican, has been caught cheating.
Driver spent his donors money on lavish hotels for official business. He then applied for reimbursement from the State but instead of returning the $50,000 to his campaign account, he kept it. He eventually plead guilty, received 3 years probation, but kept his $62,000/year pension and his state sponsored healthcare for himself and his wife.
Now that is an investigative story! Go read or watch the entire ABC13 story. There is nothing illegal or unusual about what Judge Hidalgo did.
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It’s great to see this news in context about her, after last week’s news of the “slap on the wrist.” That is, the one she received this month from the Commissioners Court. Reading that article in a recent South Belt Leader edition, I was shocked it included [irrelevant] accusations about her mishandling of insurance benefits for inpatient treatment of clinical depression. Shaming someone about their mental health condition and treatment is a bad look, especially from politicians, elected officials, or journalists.