A gay MAGA Republican was clearly surprised by a reporter who asked why she did not appear to be paying her campaign staff, as she reportedly responded to the inquiry by hanging up the phone.
Alison Esposito is running for Congress in New York, but according to Times Union reporter Timmy Facciola, her campaign finance records show she did not pay her staff for three months after launching her campaign. It is also not known if she has since begun paying them.
Facciola’s report said that when he called Esposito to ask her about the matter, she told him to submit another inquiry to her communications team before abruptly hanging up. The communications team, however, has reportedly been unresponsive.
“Whether or not staff is paid directly from a campaign or through a third party, candidates have an obligation to file payroll disbursements in accordance with existing federal laws,” said a statement from Susan Lerner, executive director of Common Cause New York, according to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Voters expect and deserve transparency from the individuals competing to represent them.”
Esposito, who spent 25 years with the NYPD, is the first out gay Republican woman to run for statewide office in New York, according to Politico. She is a proud supporter of Donald Trump and has spoken out against trans women participating in women’s sports. She also regularly rails against President Joe Biden for causing a so-called “border crisis.”
In her campaign video, she claimed, “Deadly drugs and criminals are flowing in, transforming every state into a border state.”
On her website, she also declares that she “rejects the far-left’s push for partial-birth and late-term abortions” because “babies who are born alive should receive medical care.” No one disputes this and late-term abortions do not happen. They especially do not happen after a baby is born, which would actually just be murder.