As soon as Republicans assume control of the House, investigations into Democrat malfeasance will likely start.
According to the Washington Examiner, one of those inquiries would reportedly concern Democratic New York Rep. Carolyn Maloney's solicitation of tickets for the Met Gala.
The representative from New York, who is the outgoing chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, will leave office at the end of this session.
On the other hand, according to a report from the Office of Congressional Ethics, the representative "made a phone call to Witness A, a former president of the Met, to request an invitation to the Met Gala after the gala organizers had decided not to invite her to that year's event."
The report also pointed to emails between the congresswoman and a staffer requesting contact info for the former Metropolitan Museum of Art Chief Government Relations Officer after asking if she had received an invite for the 2020 star-studded event, which was later canceled that year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The OCE's findings note that Maloney secured grants and federal funding that benefited the Met and pressed for the museum to remain in her district.
Current House gift guidance says that, in relation to charity events, members "may accept an unsolicited offer of free attendance for a charity fundraising event for you and a spouse or dependent child" but "emphasizes that solicitation of a gift is impermissible."
Tickets to the event cost around $30,000, and upwards of $200,000 for a table.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney under investigation after begging for Met Gala invite https://t.co/fsT6U9xDXr pic.twitter.com/58fOZHSbjp
— New York Post (@nypost) November 22, 2022
NEW - Office of Congressional Ethics report just released by House Ethics finds Rep. Carolyn Maloney "may have
solicited or accepted impermissible gifts associated with her attendance at the Met Gala." If she did so this could violate House rules, standards of conduct & the law pic.twitter.com/ph2nOnuMdF— Nicholas Wu (@nicholaswu12) November 21, 2022
When interviewed by the Office of Congressional Ethics the representative, she denied any wrongdoing and said that she "did not recall a year in which she was not invited to the Met Gala. Specifically, Rep. Maloney stated, '[a]s I said, I was often invited. I was invited to more events at the Met than I ever went to because I live in Washington."
Reps. Jim Jordan of Ohio and James Comer of Kentucky said in a press conference that GOP investigators had a mountain of evidence, much of it provided by whistleblowers, allegedly indicating "pay-for-play" schemes spanning dozens of countries and allegedly involving Hunter Biden essentially selling access to his politically connected father, who spent decades in the Senate, and two other individuals. Jordan is expected to take over the chairmanship of the House Judiciary Committee.