Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is facing renewed scrutiny from the House Ethics Committee over her attendance at the 2021 Met Gala. During the A-list event, she famously wore a white gown with the phrase “tax the rich” emblazoned across the back.
Ethics panel conclusion
In a new report, the panel concludes that AOC failed to pay market value for services and items associated with the event. While she attempted to follow House rules on gift acceptances, the committee found that Ocasio-Cortez “impermissibly accept[ed] a gift of free admission to the 2021 Met Gala for her partner [fiancé Riley Roberts] and fail[ed] to pay full fair market value for some of the items worn to the event.”
What AOC owes
As guests of Vogue, Ocasio-Cortez and her partner received tickets valued at $35,000 each. Additional services provided include a custom gown, along with professional hair and makeup, plus a hotel room for event preparations. Although the congresswoman worked alongside an attorney to navigate ethics rules and paid for a majority of the items, the committee claims that “the payments were significantly delayed and some payments fell short of fair market value.”
AOC’s statement
In response to the ruling, Ocasio-Cortez’s chief of staff, Mike Casca, said, “The Congresswoman appreciates the Committee finding that she made efforts to ensure her compliance with House Rules and sought to act consistently with her ethical requirements as a Member of the House. … She accepts the ruling and will remedy the remaining amounts, as she’s done at each step in this process.”
The Met Gala dress
After the event, Ocasio-Cortez addressed the attention her dress received by sharing the message behind it on Instagram. “The medium is the message,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote at the time. “NYC elected officials are regularly invited to and attend the Met due to our responsibilities in overseeing our city’s cultural institutions that serve the public. I was one of several in attendance. Dress is borrowed.”
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Author: Isabella Torregiani
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