#ncga: Hastings one-ups the Speaker, Saine
Jason Saine charged over $19,000 in clothes to his campaign. Speaker Tim Moore had a bunch of unexplained credit card charges, as well as a bunch of rent payments to himself and payments to himself for campaigning for himself. According to records at the state board of elections, State Rep. Kelly Hastings — renowned as a connoisseur of solar power and fine cigars — has paid thousands of dollars to himself and his wife out of his campaign fund for the last three years.
Yessirree. Hastings has followed the lead of Moore in “reimbursing” himself and his wife for “in-kind contributions” to his campaigns. I am sure it has nothing to do with the fact that Hastings and Moore share the same campaign treasurer — Donna Mabry of Shelby.
On July 1, 2013, the campaign paid Hastings $8,162. The campaign report described the payment as ”reimb for in-kind contrib.” and “diff between US and state per diem.Jan-June 27.” Ooooooo-kay.
On December 2, 2013, the campaign paid Hastings $893.20 as a “reimbursement for in-kind contrib.” and ”diff IRS state mileage.”
On December 31, 2013, the campaign again paid Hastings $893.20 with the same vague explanation. It also paid him $1855 that same day for “diff between US and state per diem.”
In 2014, the campaign went on a spending spree — reimbursing the Hastingses for all kinds of “expenses related to campaign and holding office.” On february 17, the campaign paid Kelly Hastings $453.13 and $154.35. On February 19, it paid him $509.24. On March 1, it paid him $177.35. On March 3, the payment to the legislator was $457.24. On April 7, Kelly Hastings was paid $689.44.
On May 5, the campaign paid Hastings $537.54, and on June 6 it paid him $1936.53. On June 30, the campaign paid the legislator $2080.40 as a “refund campaign exp for holding public office.”
The in-kind contribution “reimbursements” kept coming for Kelly Hastings. On August 3, Hastings was paid $2578.10 and $50.40 by the campaign. On September 3, he was paid $1440.28. On September 11, he got $508.31, and on October 1, he got $476.85.
On October 24, Hastings was paid $508.48 by the campaign. On October 31, he got $156.64. On November 7, he got $771.54, and on November 25, he got $262.86. On December 29, Hastings was paid $83.44, and on December 31, he got $527.98.
In 2015 — not an election year — Mrs. Hastings got in on the reimbursement action. On January 4, Anika Howell Hastings was paid $252.83 as “reimb for in-kind cont.” On January 16, she got $397.68 for the same reason. On February 17, she got $450 and on February 18 she got $1,100.
Also that month, Kelly Hastings was paid $329.13 on January 6 and 123.63 on January 25. On January 30, he got $326.96 and on February 17 he got $892.20. On February 26, the campaign paid Hastings $1680 and $469.68. On February 28, he got $179.40.
On April 2, Hastings was paid $133.40 and $50.48 and $2149.68. On May 1, he was paid $216.20, and on May 2, he got $2100. On June 4, the legislator was paid $1820.30 and $469.68 by his campaign.
This is a great conservative, maybe the greatest of all time!!! He is the only member that has never cash a check from the General Assembly.
Rep Hastings has been living out of his campaign funds. The solar Lobbist, wind lobbist, the toll road Lobbist, hell all the Lobbist.
Rep Hastings NEW Campagine slogan:
If you want me to stay everyone must PAY!
And DONT forget I’m the most Conservative person In Raleigh
Wow you don’t leave much to say about the rest of the politicians principles or do you ?
PS next year I need a new car
Hey big Man let me hold YOUR dollar !
I’m the most conservative in Raleigh.
Except for solar, wind, tolls, and whatever I receive Campagin funds to support.
Christmas is coming, I need your money!
Hastings seems like the best politician that lobbyist and special interest money can buy.
This guy really needs a primary from someone who is both conservative and honest.
In-kind contributions don’t get reimbursement checks. That’s why it’s called a contribution. This sounds more like money laundering. But what do I know?
Hey, you conservatives need to lay off Kelly Hastings who is one of the most ardent progressives in the legislature. These days, to pass President Obama’s policies at the state level, we have to look to progressive Republicans like Kelly Hastings, or like Jason Saine, Nelson Dollar, or Charles Jeter, instead of progressive Democrats.
Our progressive groups, like our Green Energy friends, really don’t care what our progressive Republican aliies do with the payola we send them to motivate their votes for President Obama’s policies. All that matters is that they stay bought and vote progressive. If they want nice clothes, or steak dinners, or even just put it in their pockets, we don’t care. It’s our side’s money, so why should you care?
Kelly Hastings has been a true progressive. He has proven he does not care about that silly Republican platform and will vote for President Obama’s key policies over the GOP platform in a heartbeat. He understands that stopping Climate Change will save the Polar Bears, and that is a lot more important than those stuffy old Republican principles. Kelly Hastings is also willing to throw his own constituents under the bus in order to save the Polar Bears. Building all that solar and wind energy instigated by the taxpayer subsidies and renewable energy mandates that Hastings and other progressive Republicans have voted for will, as President Obama has said, cause electric rates for consumers ”to necessarily skyrocket”. These progressive Republicans care more about saving the Polar Bears than about those peons, their constituents, who will have to pay those huge electric bills. Who cares if the peons can no longer afford air conditioning if it saves the Polar Bears? We need to get rid of air conditioning for the masses anyway.
Watching these progressive Republicans help implement President Obama’s agenda makes me as excited as when I invented the internet.
You people make me sick.
Next you are going to tell me that the guy who monitors the hot doughnuts can’t eat one once in a while.
This is America and if hot doughnuts are slowly passing in front of you I think the Constitution says that you can eat one or three. It is the same thing as with campaign money.
If you don’t sample the goods how can you be sure the money is clean? Didn’t think you could answer that one! These men are heroes.
One of my professors in Germany use to say “A politician is concerned about the next election, a Statesman is concerned about the next generation.” Perhaps we can decide who is who.