Sen. Ted Cruz is accusing President Joe Biden of mixing taxpayer dollars in his campaign maneuvers.
“I write to refer this to you for investigation as a possible violation of the Hatch Act, federal law that broadly prohibits using taxpayer dollars for campaign activity,” reads a letter Cruz submitted on Thursday to Hampton Dellinger, head of the Office of Special Counsel, according to POLITICO. “Congress, not President Biden, wrote [the infrastructure law], and it did not do so to aid the President’s reelection campaign.”
“These displays are nothing more than campaign yard signs courtesy of the American taxpayer,” Cruz wrote.
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Sen. Ted Cruz wants a probe into the whether the Democratic incumbent running for a second term has been breaching the Hatch Act to curry favor to a 2021 infrastructure law.
By its definition, the Hatch Act prohibits "political activity of individuals principally employed by state, District of Columbia, or local executive agencies and who work in connection with programs financed in whole or in part by federal loans or grants."
In his first year of office back in 2021, Biden signed a $1 trillion infrastructure bill into law to funnel billions to states and local governments to modernize antiquated roads, bridges, and transit systems.
Cruz blames Biden's White House for having “unilaterally rebranded” the 2021 statute as “President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.”
The Texas pol claims the notion of Biden wording it in such a way creates a "highly politicized" aura to the law — and gives blanket credit to Biden, according to the outlet.
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To support his accusations of Biden blurring political lines Cruz points out the White House's guidelines over displaying the laws, including the infrastructure preface with Biden getting credit.
Indeed, there is a page dedicated to the bill that reads in various red, grey, and blue forms: “Project Funded By President Joe Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.”
Cruz blasted the signage: “These displays are nothing more than campaign yard signs courtesy of the American taxpayer."
White House spokeswoman Robyn Patterson defended the signs in a statement to POLITICO, claiming they “promote transparency and inform taxpayers how federal dollars are being spent.”
And took issue for Cruz voting against the seminal bill that seeks to upgrade the nation's infrastructure.
“If Senator Cruz were half as concerned about Texas kids getting safe drinking water as he is about signs, he might have voted for the Infrastructure Law and to send $31 billion to tackle essential infrastructure needs across Texas,” she said. “President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is building roads, expanding high speed internet access, and replacing lead pipes across Texas.”
