Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call
- Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez blamed a campaign staffer for not paying Met Gala invoices on time.
- Her office only paid for the rented dress and accessories after the Office of Congressional Ethics asked about them.
- The staffer, who is no longer employed by AOC, acknowledged responsibility, saying "it fell off my radar."
New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez blamed a campaign staffer for not paying her Met Gala invoices in time, according to interviews with investigators from the House of Representatives ethics office.
In the interviews, the star Democratic lawmaker told the Office of Congressional Ethics that she just saw documents about the unpaid invoices the day before they met.
"And I just never, ever, ever would have allowed that to happen knowing what I have learned," she told investigators, "But I wasn't privy to the invoices, wasn't privy to the ones that had been sent."
AOC added: "And it is just a deeply regrettable situation. I feel l terrible for especially the small businesses that were impacted."
The Office of Congressional Ethics found that AOC may have accepted "impermissible gifts" by attending the 2021 Met Gala in a dress featuring the phrase "Tax the Rich" in bold red letters and getting makeup and hair done for the star-studded event.
The ethics office's investigators found that AOC's office didn't pay bills for the rentals and services until after the investigators asked about it. They recommended subpoenas for her dress designer and others who refused to be interviewed as part of the ethics probe.
According to the interviews, the AOC staffer acknowledged responsibility, saying the unpaid invoices "fell off my radar."
"I think the delay there for me was I didn't have access to her personal credit card at that moment," the staffer said.
A spokesperson for AOC said the staffer is no longer employed by the Congresswoman.