Maxine Waters pays daughter another $8K in campaign funds, adding to $1M in previous payments
Karen Waters received nearly $50K in campaign funds this year
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The re-election campaign of Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., shelled out another $8,000 to her daughter in September, adding to over $1 million the congresswoman has paid her daughter over the past nearly two decades.
Karen Waters and her company, Progressive Connections, have received over $1 million in payments from Rep. Waters’ campaign since 2003 for organizing slate-mailing operations to bolster her mother's re-election.
A Federal Election Commission filing Wednesday by Citizens for Waters shows that the younger Waters received two payments totaling $8,000 from the committee in June for "slate mailer management fees," totaling nearly $50,000 for the year.
Slate-mailing is an uncommon practice in federal elections, where a consulting firm is hired to create a pamphlet of sorts that contains a list of candidates or policy measures, and advises voters how to cast their ballots.
Rep. Maxine Waters, a Democrat from California and chairwoman of the House Financial Services Committee, attends a hearing in Washington, D.C., on June 23, 2022. (Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
TOP HOUSE DEMS CONTINUE PAYING FAMILY MEMBERS THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS USING CAMPAIGN FUNDS
Rep. Waters, the U.S. House Financial Services Committee chairwoman, was reportedly the only federal politician to use a slate-mailer operation during the 2020 general election.
In 2004, the Los Angeles Times revealed that the Waters campaign had shelled out more than $1 million to other family members over the previous eight years.
"We don’t have to answer your questions," she told the newspaper at the time. "We are not bad people."
Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., was reportedly the only federal politician to use a slate-mailer operation during the 2020 general election. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Waters' campaign did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Both Democrats and Republicans have paid relatives with campaign contributions over the years. In 2020, OpenSecrets published a piece showing incumbent politicians in Congress on both sides of the aisle lavishing their family members with campaign cash. While it is legal for federal lawmakers to employ family members on campaigns, the practice is generally frowned upon by ethics experts.
House Majority Whip James Clyburn, D-S.C., also has a history of shelling out campaign money to his family members, including his daughters and grandson, who received thousands in campaign cash this election cycle.
House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., listens to DeAndrea Gist Benjamin, of South Carolina, nominee to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Fourth Circuit, testify during her Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on Nov. 15, 2022. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images / Getty Images)
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Fox News’ Caitlin McFall, Houston Keene and Joe Schoffstall contributed to this report.