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Monday, March 29, 2010

POLITICO.com: Michael Steele was at a bondage-themed nightclub?


The Republican National Committee is pushing back hard Monday on a story in The Daily Caller. The RNC denies that Chairman Michael Steele was “never” at a bondage-themed nightclub in West Hollywood, Calif., as the web site suggests.

The Daily Caller story claims that Steele wanted to buy a private jet with RNC funds.  the Daily Caller stated that “Steele travels in style,” citing, among other things, $1,946.25 “spent at Voyeur West Hollywood, a bondage-themed nightclub featuring topless women dancers imitating lesbian sex.”

While Steele has not purchased a plane, he continues to charter them. According to federal disclosure records, the RNC spent $17,514 on private aircraft in the month of February alone as well as $12,691 on limousines during the same period. There are no readily identifiable private plane expenses for Democratic National Committee chairman Tim Kaine in the DNC’s last three months of filings.

POLITICO confirmed the RNC expense by examining the committee’s February Federal Election Commission filing. The information provided on $1,946 in RNC funds spent Feb. 4 matches the nightclub’s Santa Monica address. It is not clear who actually made the expenditure at the club.

Daily Caller Founder Tucker Carlson defended the story to POLITICO and said his outlet intends to provide more details on the reporting of the story. He also questioned the accuracy of the RNC’s response. For now, the only official response offered by the Daily Caller comes in a short post about the RNC’s comment.

“Jonathan Strong, who broke the story about the RNC’s expenditures at a Hollywood strip club, asked about the strip club expense, and was rebuffed by an RNC spokesperson who said that the organization doesn’t comment on specific expenditures,” the post reads.

Steele himself declined numerous interview requests, though his defenders point out that luxurious accommodations are sometimes necessary to attract big-time donors, especially since Republicans remain in the minority in Washington.

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