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Title: How Marco Rubio charged thousands in personal expenses on his Republican Party credit card including $4,000 flooring for his Miami home – and hired his ex-Dolphins cheerleader wife
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URL Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art ... Dolphins-cheerleader-wife.html
Published: May 14, 2015
Author: By MARTIN GOULD
Post Date: 2015-05-14 20:50:17 by out damned spot
Keywords: Rubio, Republican, credit card
Views: 1156
Comments: 3
Senator Marco Rubio is a front-runner for the Republican nod for 2016 *But as a member of the Florida House, he used his home as a base for a political committee *He spent nearly $85,000 on 'office/operating costs' and $65,000 on administrative costs. *His wife, Jeanette, was treasurer for one, receiving $5,700 in expenses, for 'gas and meals' *He charged car repairs, Apple products, fancy dinners and even a $134 haircut on Republican Party American Express card *Rubio only repaid the state party once he was caught out, claims a former su pporter *In his last financial statement to Congress he said he had at least $450,000 in liabilities Republican presidential front-runner Marco Rubio charged thousands of dollars of personal expenses on a party-issued credit card, used his home as the base for his political committee and hired his wife, who billed $5,700 in 'gas and food' expenses, a Daily Mail Online investigation into his finances has revealed. Car repairs, fancy dinners and even a $134 haircut were among the items he charged on the American Express card, which was supposed to pay for only Republican Party-related expenses. One former supporter even revealed the Florida senator confided to him that he charged more than $4,000 to the card to pay for new flooring in his Miami-area home. 'We were in a Starbucks in Tampa and we sat down to get to know one another,' former political consultant Chris Ingram told Daily Mail Online. 'I asked him if there was anything that might be a problem in his upcoming campaign. He told me "I have this issue with an American Express card where we accidentally charged $4-5,000 for home flooring."' Rubio's history of mingling of personal expenses with those of his political party - he says he's paid them all back - are bound to come up during what promises to be a hard-fought primary battle and, if he is successful, to become a major part of next year's race for the White House. 'What worries me is if Marco Rubio were to win the party's nomination, you can be sure that Democrats will make a big deal of it in the general election,' said Mike Fazano, a former Majority Leader in the Florida House of Representatives, who gave Rubio an early leg-up on his political rise by appointing him a party whip. Rubio's campaign dismissed the allegations as 'old stuff that we have addressed in the past.' His communications director Alex Conant told Daily Mail Online that a 2010 report by law firm Alston & Bird into the claims of wrongdoing had found that charges were related to party business.' Rubio, 43, is among the least well-off of the Republicans running for the White House. When he left the Florida House of Representatives in 2008 he said he had a net worth of $8,351 while having hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt from mortgages and $115,000 in student loans. In his last financial statement to Congress he said he had at least $450,000 in liabilities. The new focus on Rubio's financial dealings comes as the New York Times reported on how his rise from being the son of impoverished Cuban immigrants to one of the country's most enigmatic and powerful senators has been largely bankrolled by one man. The paper called billionaire car dealer Norman Braman a 'remarkable and unique patron' to Rubio. He has bankrolled Mr. Rubio's campaigns. He has financed Mr. Rubio's legislative agenda,' wrote the Times. 'And, at the same time, he has subsidized Mr. Rubio's personal finances, as the rising politician and his wife grappled with heavy debt and big swings in their income.' Braman hired Rubio as a lawyer, gave his wife, former Miami Dolphins cheerleader Jeanette Dousdebes a job advising his family's philanthropic foundation, covered Rubio's salary as a college instructor and let him use his private plane. 'Even in an era dominated by super-wealthy donors, Mr. Braman stands out, given how integral he has been not only to Mr. Rubio's political aspirations but also to his personal finances,' said the Times. But it is Rubio's apparent difficulty keeping his personal finances separated from those of his party that has Republicans concerned. The credit card bills show Rubio charged items including $765.05 at Apple's online store, as well as the $134 haircut and items such as $114.70 at Mario the Baker, $10.50 at an AMC movie theater and $68 at Happy Wine liquor store near his home. Rubio claims the Happy Wine charges were 'to buy sandwiches for working lunches in my office, a legitimate expense.' Other charges on the American Express card included $1,456.87 at Disneyworld, $761.54 at Costco and $171.15 at the Flower Mart of Hialeah, Florida as well as several hundred dollars in delinquency payments. Rubio also charged the party $1,000 for repairs - carried out by one of Braman's companies - to his family's minivan, He said the vehicle was damaged by a parking valet at a Republican Party event. He then charged a further $2,976.15 for an Avis hire car he says he needed for five weeks. Columnist Carl Hiaasen of the Miami Herald took him to task for one AmEx bill for $412 charged at All Fusion Electronics in Miami for 'computer repairs.' 'If you visit All Fusion, you won't see many computers. However, the company does sell drum kits, guitars and karaoke machines,' wrote Hiaasen. A 2006 family reunion in Georgia is another classic example of questionable financial judgment on the part of Rubio. His former chief-of-staff Richard Corcoran put thousands of dollars on his card to pay for a Rubio family trip at the plush Melhana Plantation in Georgia, now called Coalson Plantation. However Rubio said that was an error as Corcoran had given the resort his card to pay for a dinner for senior staffers to celebrate his Senate victory. That dinner was canceled and the card, Rubio claims, was inadvertently used to pay for the reunion. Rubio charged a further $2,976.15 for an Avis hire car he says he needed for five weeks, $1,456.87 at Disney World, $1,000 to Braman for repair of the family car, $765.05 at the Apple Web store and $412 at All-Fusion, he said was for computer equipment. It is a store that sells musical instruments. 
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I recommend that you read the entire article. There is a lot of info there.
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