[Hoot Gibson]

Let's discuss paid celebrity endorsements by presidential candidates. It never occured to me that celebrities could make millions selling endorsements to presidential candidates until the 2024 campaign. 

Is this the way that liberals believe democracy should work? Pay millions to celebrities in exchange for their endorsements and a personal appearance that the candidate can use as a photo-op in front of a large audience?

No wonder Kamala needed $1 billion + for her campaign. 

I have no problems with campaigns reimbursing celebrities for production expenses for concerts, etc. but paying them millions for showing up and reading a brief endorsement just seems wrong to me.

[Hoot Gibson]

Unsurprisingly, there has been a big "No comment" from the same BGR lefties attacking Matt Gaetz based on unsubstantiated rumors. Regardless of what the House Ethics Committee's report concludes, it is wrong to make criminal accusations with zero evidence.

In the case of Kamala Harris, we have overwhelming evidence that she bought celebrity endorsements using campaign funds. Her donors had no opportunity to object to the misuse of their donations. Did she simply exercise poor judgment, or did Kamala break finance campaign laws in bribing celebrities in exchange for their endorsements? I am not in a position to make that judgment because I do not have access to the campaign spending records and I am not a lawyer, but I will share my research with you.

It is not legal for a presidential candidate to spend campaign funds directly in exchange for endorsements from American citizens. Campaign finance laws in the United States prohibit the use of campaign funds for personal benefit or for purposes that are not campaign-related. Paying individuals for endorsements would likely be considered an improper use of campaign funds, as it could be seen as a form of bribery or coercion.

Endorsements are generally expected to be given voluntarily based on a person's beliefs, values, or support for the candidate. While campaign funds can be used for legitimate campaign expenses, such as advertising, staffing, and events, paying for endorsements crosses ethical and legal boundaries.

Key Points:

1. Campaign Finance Laws:
   • If campaign funds are used to pay for celebrity endorsements, this must be properly reported to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) as a campaign expense. Failure to disclose payments or disguising them as something else can lead to violations of campaign finance law.
     
     
2. Criminal vs. Civil:
   
3. Civil Violation: If the payments are not properly disclosed but no fraudulent intent is proven, it may result in civil penalties, such as fines or other administrative actions by the FEC.
   
   
4. Criminal Violation: If the payment involves deliberate fraud, misreporting, or an intent to deceive (e.g., laundering money through shell organizations or disguising the nature of the expense), it can rise to the level of a criminal offense. Criminal charges could include fraud, bribery, or violations of federal election laws.
   
   
5. Influence and Transparency:
   • Paying celebrities for endorsements is legal in commercial contexts, but in political campaigns, it must adhere to strict transparency and reporting rules. Any attempt to buy endorsements secretly or circumvent these rules could have legal consequences.
     

Conclusion:

• Transparent and properly reported payments for endorsements are legal and civil in nature.
  
  
• Non-compliance with reporting requirements or fraudulent actions could result in criminal charges, depending on intent and severity.
  
  
• $10 million in exchange for one of many purchased celebrity endorsements may be interpreted as a severe and intentional violation.
  
  
• Campaign finance laws are enacted to protect politicians who vote for them. They are written to make it more difficult for challengers to beat incumbent holders of elective office. Consequently, it is unlikely that Biden's FEC will criminally charge Kamala Harris for bribing celebrities who endorsed her, and in some cases also interviewed her after accepting bribes.
  

[Old School Hound]

VP Harris asked for Old School's endorsement. I wanted a case of Schlitz Malt Liquor(16 oz.cans) and a pair of tickets to see the Eagles at the Sphere in Las Vegas. Apparently, my price was too high. An important endorsement was lost. Could have made the difference.

[Hoot Gibson]

VP Harris asked for Old School's endorsement. I wanted a case of Schlitz Malt Liquor(16 oz.cans) and a pair of tickets to see the Eagles at the Sphere in Las Vegas.  Apparently, my price was too high.  An important endorsement was lost.  Could have made the difference.

Kudos to you for laughing off Kamala's bribery and resisting your urge to defend the indefensible. That is a rare demonstration of good judgment on your part.

[Hoot Gibson]

VP Harris asked for Old School's endorsement. I wanted a case of Schlitz Malt Liquor(16 oz.cans) and a pair of tickets to see the Eagles at the Sphere in Las Vegas.  Apparently, my price was too high.  An important endorsement was lost.  Could have made the difference.

Kudos to you for laughing off Kamala's bribery and resisting your urge to defend the indefensible. That is a rare demonstration of good judgment on your part.

I am waiting for the final FEC filing by the Kamala Harris campaign has been released to post a list of all the idiotic campaign expenditures made by the failed presidential candidate's campaign. Hopefully, the FEC will shock me and prosecute Kamala for defrauding her donors. It is as if Kamala believed that Trump was going to win from the beginning of her campaign and Democrats decided to turn the campaign into a large scale money laundering operation.

I wonder what Kamala's cut was?

[Old School Hound]

VP Harris asked for Old School's endorsement. I wanted a case of Schlitz Malt Liquor(16 oz.cans) and a pair of tickets to see the Eagles at the Sphere in Las Vegas.  Apparently, my price was too high.  An important endorsement was lost.  Could have made the difference.

Kudos to you for laughing off Kamala's bribery and resisting your urge to defend the indefensible. That is a rare demonstration of good judgment on your part.

I can laugh with the best of them. What I am having trouble laughing off, however, is your(and Jet's) misogyny and sexism. Your posts , and constant slander and about the honorable Vice-President should make every woman in this country cringe. Misogyny is alive and well in the country.

[Hoot Gibson]

VP Harris asked for Old School's endorsement. I wanted a case of Schlitz Malt Liquor(16 oz.cans) and a pair of tickets to see the Eagles at the Sphere in Las Vegas.  Apparently, my price was too high.  An important endorsement was lost.  Could have made the difference.

Kudos to you for laughing off Kamala's bribery and resisting your urge to defend the indefensible. That is a rare demonstration of good judgment on your part.

I can laugh with the best of them. What I am having trouble laughing off, however, is your(and Jet's) misogyny and sexism. Your posts , and constant slander and about the honorable Vice-President should make every woman in this country cringe. Misogyny is alive and well in the country.

Sorry, but the opinions of parrots mean less than nothing to me. Kamala is stupid, lazy, and incompetent. The fact that she is also a woman is coincidental. Now that she is a Republican, I would vote for Tulsi Gabbard with no hesitation, if she is the Republican nominee in 2028. There is nothing honorable or decent about Kamala Harris.

[Hoot Gibson]

I was wrong. (See how easy that is, vector?) Kamala did not pay Oprah $1 million for her interview.



Kamala paid Oprah $2.5 million for the interview.

[Hoot Gibson]

Will the FEC take criminal action against Kamala? Bribery is not only illegal, it is an impeachable offense.

[jetpilot]

VP Harris asked for Old School's endorsement. I wanted a case of Schlitz Malt Liquor(16 oz.cans) and a pair of tickets to see the Eagles at the Sphere in Las Vegas.  Apparently, my price was too high.  An important endorsement was lost.  Could have made the difference.

You did it wrong. If you would have demanded $2 million and agreed to kick back a million to Kamala personally you would now be set up for a lifetime of tasty Schlitz.

[Old School Hound]

Will the FEC take criminal action against Kamala? Bribery is not only illegal, it is an impeachable offense.

ANSWER:  NO

What was the bribe?  Oprah?

---

VP Harris asked for Old School's endorsement. I wanted a case of Schlitz Malt Liquor(16 oz.cans) and a pair of tickets to see the Eagles at the Sphere in Las Vegas.  Apparently, my price was too high.  An important endorsement was lost.  Could have made the difference.

You did it wrong. If you would have demanded $2 million and agreed to kick back a million to Kamala personally you would now be set up for a lifetime of tasty Schlitz.

I didn't think about that. Thanks. I need to work on my criminal game.

[Hoot Gibson]

Will the FEC take criminal action against Kamala? Bribery is not only illegal, it is an impeachable offense.

ANSWER:  NO

What was the bribe?  Oprah?

I already addressed that in a previous post. Whether a crime was committed depends on whether John McCain and his fellow incumbents included enough loopholes in campaign finance laws to legalize money laundering, bribery, and fraud. If they failed to imagine that there would be a presidential candidate desperate enough to pay celebrity pals millions of dollars for endorsements, then Kamala will remain free to fleece future campaign donors. Is it a crime to buy votes of people who may have voted for Kamala anyway? If it's not, it should be.