Report: Federal investigators target Bachmann in ethics probe

Tea party-favorite Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) is the target of a federal investigation into "intentional campaign finance violations," The Daily Beast reported on Monday.

According to senior Daily Beast columnist John Avalon, investigators representing the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) have begun interviewing former staffers from Bachmann's failed presidential campaign.

“I have been interviewed by investigators," former Bachmann adviser Peter Waldron told Avalon, adding that "other staff members across the country" were also being interviewed.

Waldron filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission earlier this year accusing Bachmann of illegally funnelling funds from her MichelePAC to her presidential campaign to pay consultants.

William McGinley, an campaign attorney for the Minnesota congresswoman, on Monday confirmed that the Office of Congressional Ethics was investigating the 2012 presidential campaign.

"There are no allegations that the congresswoman engaged in any wrongdoing," McGinley insisted to The Daily Beast. “We are constructively engaged with the OCE and are confident that at the end of their Review the OCE Board will conclude that Congresswoman Bachmann did not do anything inappropriate.”

The Office of Congressional Ethics was expected to decide within three months whether to recommend that the House Ethics Committee pursue charges against Bachmann.

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(h/t: Political Wire)