It began more than three years ago with reports Rep. Duncan D. Hunter used campaign funds to pay for $600 of airline fees to fly a pet rabbit cross-country.
It mushroomed into courtroom revelations showing that the California Republican and father of three had multiple extramarital affairs.
And it’s ending with a plea agreement by Hunter, 42, for charges of spending hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign donations on personal expenses. Hunter, first elected to the House in 2008 and the namesake of his father, former Rep. Duncan Hunter, who kept the seat for 28 years before that, will be under pressure from Republican congressional leaders to resign.
Hunter’s fall played out in the public arena and the U.S. District Court, revealing one of the more sordid congressional scandals of recent decades. A sentencing date has not been set, but prison time remains a possibility.
The retired Marine Corps captain and artillery officer, who saw battle in Iraq and Afghanistan, was a rising star when he joined the House in January 2009. His father, in nearly three decades representing inland San Diego County, was one of the most conservative members of Congress. The junior Hunter continued that legacy with his votes during his decade-plus in the House.
But it wasn’t Hunter’s stances on public policy issues that drew the most public attention. The Federal Elections Commission started scrutinizing Hunter’s use of campaign funds for personal expenses over the prior year after the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington filed an ethics complaint.
The full House Ethics Committee then started investigating the matter and related issues, including his wife Margaret’s monthly $3,000 salary as campaign manager — though the congressman had never faced a competitive race in the strongly Republican district. The couple shared a credit card that including spending on questionable items, including $1,302 for video games, $600 to allow the family rabbit to be transported by plane, groceries, surf shop purchases, and other expenses.
In February 2017, the FBI raided Hunter’s campaign offices, seizing computers and financial records. The raid only became public six months later after court documents federal prosecutors intended to file under seal accidentally became public.
But in March 2017, the House Ethics Committee revealed the Department of Justice revealed Hunter was under criminal investigation for alleged campaign finance violations.
[Related: Five crazy details from the Duncan Hunter indictment]
Hunter throughout denied wrongdoing, But on Aug. 21, 2018, a federal grand jury indicted Duncan and Margaret Hunter on 60 counts of wire fraud, falsifying records, campaign violations, and conspiracy. Federal prosecutors said the couple misused $250,000 in campaign funds for personal expenses, along with filing false campaign finance reports.
The indictment also alleged the congressman spent campaign money on “personal relationships” with five women, with paramours including lobbyists and his own congressional staffers.
By that time, the Hunter marriage had disintegrated. The pair entered the federal courtroom separately and had different lawyers. Hunter said in court proceedings that he blamed his wife for any spending irregularities, saying she handled all their personal and campaign finances.
On June 13, Margaret Hunter pleaded guilty to one count of corruption, which could send her to prison for up to five years.
On Monday, Rep. Hunter announced he would enter a guilty plea the following day. When he resigns from Congress, he’ll be the third lawmaker this year to leave in disgrace.
Former California Democratic Rep. Katie Hill resigned from her seat in late October after allegations she had sexual relations with a congressional aide, which she denied. Former New York Republican Rep. Chris Collins resigned in late September after entering a guilty plea for insider trading.
Despite the late-campaign cycle indictment last year, Hunter eked out a win against Ammar Campa-Najjar in California’s 50th Congressional District.
However, Republicans began to feel less confident about Hunter’s chances in 2020. Challengers for the all-party primary began lining up to challenge him.
Former Republican Rep. Darrell Issa launched his campaign on Sept. 26, arguing his one-time colleague’s legal circumstances made him too weak of a candidate to win reelection.
“As a friend and a colleague, I thank Duncan Hunter for his service to our country in the Marine Corps and in Congress, where he has always been a strong conservative voice on behalf of his constituents,” Issa said in a statement. “Though his misuse of campaign funds was clearly wrong, I wish him and his family the best as they address the matters ahead of them.”
Other candidates competing for Hunter’s seat in California’s jungle primary election include a pair of prominent Republicans locally, former San Diego Councilman Carl DeMaio and state Sen. Brian Jones, as well as 2018 Democratic rival Campa-Najjar.
