Aug 23, 2010
The NRCC Knowingly Endorsed David Rivera’s Scandal Plagued Past?!
The fact that national Republicans knew about David Rivera’s (FL-25) scandal plagued past and still endorsed his candidacy paints a disgraceful and shocking picture of their priorities. It’s now clearer than ever that the kind of leadership Republicans are offering this November is simply disturbing and wrong.
Last week it was reported that the NRCC knew all along about David Rivera’s scandal plagued past which includes an alleged history of domestic violence and running a delivery truck off the road to prevent a rival candidate’s campaign literature from being mailed. Despite this knowledge, Republican leaders John Boehner, Pete Sessions, and Eric Cantor all endorsed and touted NRCC Young Gun David Rivera. Since the allegations surfaced, Republican leadership has remained silent on the issue.
"David Rivera’s scandal plagued past is disturbing enough to show that he isn’t fit to represent South Florida in any capacity. But the decision by Republican Leader John Boehner and NRCC Chairman Pete Session’s to promote the candidacy and character of David Rivera, even after knowing about his scandal plagued past, makes this reflection of Republicans’ priorities that much more appalling," said Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee spokesperson Ryan Rudominer. "Despite their silence since these allegations surfaced last week, Republican Leader John Boehner, Whip Eric Cantor, and NRCC Chairmen Pete Sessions are sending a clear message: dangerous, scandal plagued candidates like David Rivera represent the kind of disgraceful leadership Republicans are offering voters this November."
BACKGROUND:
- The NRCC knew about David Rivera’s scandal plagued past and still endorsed his candidacy. [Politico, 8/20/10]
- In an investigative report, the Miami Herald discredited Rivera story surrounding past domestic violence allegations. The paper discovered that David Rivera did in fact had ties the victim in question despite his denials. [Miami Herald, 8/19/10]
- CBS 4 Miami discredited David Rivera’s account of what took place in a traffic accident where a truck carrying literature from a rival campaign was driven off the road. The station reported that police reports contradicted Rivera’s story about his role in the 2002 accident. In the incident, a truck carrying flyers from a rival campaign, detailing the alleged domestic violence charges, en route to a post office was driven off the road by David Rivera. [CBS 4 Miami, 8/17/10]
- Rivera previously lied about foreclosure proceedings on a home he co-owns with Marco Rubio. Rivera “denied that a bank began foreclosure proceedings on a house he owned with former House Speaker Marco Rubio even though property and foreclosure records clearly showed he did co-own the home.” [CBS 4 Miami, 8/17/10]
- Throughout the course of his campaign, Republican leaders in Washington have gone out of their way to tout Rivera’s candidacy. Not only is Rivera a member of the NRCC’s “Young Guns” program, but NRCC Chairman Pete Sessions went out of his way to highlight Rivera’s candidacy on NBC’s Meet the Press just one month ago. Both Republican Minority Leader John Boehner and Republican Whip Eric Cantor have supported Rivera’s campaign with fundraisers. In total the three have given $25,000 to Rivera’s campaign. [Meet the Press, 7/18/10; NRCC Press Releases, 4/6/10 and 4/13/10; St. Petersburg Times, 4/27/10; Miami Herald, 4/14/10; FEC.gov, accessed 8/20/10]
Want the latest updates? Follow the DCCC on Facebook and Twitter:
