Andy Biggs, House Republicans Call for Ethics Probe into Joaquin Castro After Doxxing Trump Donors
Several House Republican are calling for a House Ethics Committee investigation into Texas Democrat Representative Joaquin Castro after he publicized the identities of several prominent Trump 2020 donors in his district, subtly encouraging a boycott of their San Antonio businesses.
Castro had tweeted about the Trump donors Tuesday, receiving a sharp backlash for what many called shameless intimidation tactics.
Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs has drafted a letter on the matter, sending it to the chair of the committee, Florida Democrat Ted Deutch.
“By publishing a list of private citizens who donated to his political opponent, Rep. Castro sought to encourage harassment against those citizens simply on the basis of their political beliefs,” it read.
“It cannot be fairly argued that Rep. Castro had any other purpose in posting that list and telling his activist followers that those individuals were inciting hate. Whether he intended to provoke physical violence or merely verbal harassment, his intent was to chill the free speech and free association rights of Americans.”
Jody Hice, Ted Budd, Debbie Lesko, Jeff Duncan, Randy Weber and Matt Gaetz signed off on the letter.
The information Castro shared is publicly accessible, but it’s relatively unprecedented for a member of Congress to publicize it with the intent of inciting a boycott against his own constituents.
Castro’s an identical twin brother of former Obama administration cabinet member Julian Castro, who is running a Democratic campaign for President. The other Castro has made radically pro-illegal immigration policies the defining attribute of his campaign, going so far as to call for the “decriminalization” of illegal immigration.
The Castro with presidential ambitions has defended his brother’s schoolyard bully-style tactics.
Joaquin and I will keep fighting. The American people will fight every day for our nation, against your hate, your corruption, and your ego. And we’ll win. #AdiósTrump https://t.co/nC0haWRydr pic.twitter.com/mMneHqXyT5
— Julián Castro (@JulianCastro) August 8, 2019
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