Gallego happy Senate committee dismissed ethics complaint, which he calls ‘right-wing conspiracy’

The Senate Ethics Committee has dismissed a complaint against U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego.

The six-member committee, composed of three Republicans and three Democrats, said it found no evidence that Gallego, a Democrat, violated federal law, Senate rules or standards of conduct.

The investigation began after a complaint filed by U.S. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, a Florida Republican. Now, Gallego says he expects her to apologize.

“I look forward to an apology from Rep. Luna for weaponizing the ethics process while refusing to investigate historic corruption that’s making life harder for families,” Gallego said on X.

Why Senate Ethics Committee dismissed complaint against Ruben Gallego

The committee said it reviewed the complaint, statements from people named in it, Federal Election Commission reports, Senate and House expenditure reports, House travel disclosures and information Gallego provided in response to the committee’s requests.

The committee also said Gallego contacted it promptly after media reports about the allegations and cooperated fully throughout the investigation.

“The dismissal by the Ethics Committee reaffirms what I have said about these accusations from the beginning: they were right-wing conspiracies peddled by far-right activists like Anna Paulina Luna, the White House and their allies,” Gallego said.

The dismissal came after a month of public ethics controversies for Gallego.

Tough month for Ruben Gallego

On June 12, The Daily Beast reported that Gallego used campaign and political action committee money for luxury travel with his wife, Sydney, including trips to St. Barts and Miami.

The outlet reported that the couple traveled to St. Barts for the birthday of Sydney’s boss, a major Gallego donor, and used donor money for Sydney’s birthday trip to Miami the previous year.

On June 21, Politico reported that Gallego used campaign funds and money from his leadership PAC for family trips to Miami, Chicago, Disneyland and Disney World.

Politico also reported that Gallego used a joint campaign account with former Rep. Eric Swalwell to attend the 2023 Super Bowl in Arizona with Sydney.

After allegations of sexual misconduct emerged against Swalwell, Gallego publicly distanced himself from the California Democrat, who later suspended his campaign for governor and resigned from Congress.

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