Another Republican Congressman is Indicted by Federal Grand Jury; Democrats to Focus on "Cultur

Yesterday might be the day we all look back at as the turning point in the November midterm elections. Democrats already had plenty of ammunition to use in their campaigns, but the news regarding Michael Cohen's plea, Paul Manafort's conviction and Duncan Hunter's indictment, within a span of hours, certainly reinforces the argument that there is a "culture of corruption" in the Republican party. And all of this comes on the heels of the indictment of Rep. Chris Collins for insider trading.

New York Times: Representative Duncan Hunter was indicted by a federal grand jury in San Diego on Tuesday after a months long criminal investigation into allegations that he spent tens of thousands of dollars in campaign funds on family trips to Hawaii and Italy, private school tuition for his children and even a $600 airline ticket for a pet rabbit.

In a 48-page indictment released by the Justice Department, Mr. Hunter, Republican of California, and his wife, Margaret, are charged with converting more than $250,000 in campaign funds to pay for personal expenses and filing false campaign finance records with the Federal Election Commission.

Mr. Hunter, 41, becomes the second Republican congressman to be indicted this month. Representative Chris Collins, Republican of New York, was indicted on insider trading charges, and announced days later that he had suspended his re-election campaign. The two were the earliest congressional supporters of the presidential campaign of Donald J. Trump.Mr. Collins, who is accused of passing insider information to his son about a drug company on whose board he served, has said he expects to be “fully vindicated and exonerated.”

After the Hunter and Collins indictments, Democrats can credibly argue that corruption in the Republican party runs much deeper than just within the Trump White House.

Mike Allen, Axios: “Corruption instantly becomes a centerpiece issue in the midterm campaigns — a huge new weight for Republicans in marginal races.

”Said a top GOP guru: “The Republican Party looks like a criminal enterprise.”

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