Washington DC - Arizona Senator Ruben Gallego accused President Donald Trump of weaponizing the Department of Justice to target him with accusations of alleged campaign finance violations.
"Trump is targeting Senator Gallego while the most weaponized Department of Justice in history is turning a blind eye to Trump's unprecedented corruption that's raising costs for families, and instead targeting anyone who gets in their way," a spokesperson for Gallego told CNN on Monday.
The statement came in response to an Axios report which had dropped hours earlier, revealing the DOJ had opened an investigation into Gallego based on a "whistleblower complaint" from southern California.
To make matters even more complicated, the Senate Ethics Committee on Monday also closed a case against Gallego – filed by Republican Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna – alleging campaign finance violations and inappropriate sexual behavior.
"It's the least surprising news of the week that this comes immediately after the Senate Ethics Committee cleared Senator Gallego of rightwing smears pushed by the administration weeks ago," the spokesperson said.
The DOJ investigations will specifically investigate accusations that Gallego used PAC money to fund family trips to Miami, Chicago, Disneyland, and Disney World. He has denied the accusations.
Prior to the investigation, Politico was the first to report on these specific counts of alleged financial violations. The report also accused Gallego of using a campaign account to attend the 2023 Super Bowl in Arizona.
An anonymous source cited by Politico said Gallego "spends his campaign account like it's his personal slush fund… He's using campaign cash to live a luxury lifestyle!"
Gallego is believed to be eyeing a potential run for the presidency in 2028. The allegations being investigated by the DOJ could possibly derail those efforts.