I know both sides do it, but it seems like Republicans have almost perfected the art of ripping off the government.
Aaron Schock, a Republican Representatives from Illinois is the latest Republican to realize that his version of milking the government was not foolproof, and thanks to those pesky reporters from Politico, Schock’s days of drinking from the never-ending bosom of the United States government, abruptly came to an end when the Republican realized that the gig was up and resigned.
Here’s an example of the craziness of this Schock character from Illinois. The Republican charged the government for mileage on his personal vehicle, from 2010 to 2014. No crime here, charging for mileage is common, everyone does it. But Schock was either extremely greedy or a Republican, and in today’s world of politics, greed and Republican apparently go hand in hand.
The congressman’s vehicle history was pieced together from dozens of pages of Illinois vehicle records.
When Schock transferred the SUV to an Illinois dealership in 2014, it had 81,860 miles on the odometer, documents show. However, from January 2010 to the end of July 2014, he billed the federal government for 123,131 miles on his personal vehicle. During the same period, the Republican billed his “Schock for Congress” campaign account and GOP Generation Y Fund, his leadership political action committee, for an additional 49,388 miles.
Altogether, Schock sought reimbursement for 172,520 miles on his car, despite the fact that he signed documents that certified the vehicle traveled less than half that distance.
That, in addition to other inappropriate use of campaign funds detailed by Politico, forced Schock to come to terms with the flaws in his extortion game. It couldn’t go on any longer and the Republican issued this brief statement on Tuesday.
“[T]he constant questions over the last six weeks have proven a great distraction that has made it too difficult for me to serve the people of the 18th District with the high standards that they deserve and which I have set for myself. I have always sought to do what’s best for my constituents, and I thank them for the opportunity to serve.”
Later Tuesday, a spokesman for Schock added, “In an effort to remove any questions and out of an abundance of caution, Congressman Schock has reimbursed all monies received for official mileage since his election to Congress.”
Schock will “serve” the people of his district until the end of March.
