As many of you know, I am currently analyzing the 8-Day campaign finance reports for Saturday’s election. As I plug in the numbers into my database, I come across some interesting items that I like to share with you. Yesterday, I came across one for Peter Svarzbein’s campaign.
As you know, Svarzbein is using a “Friends for Peter Svarzbein” Specific Purpose Committee funding mechanism to raise and spend money for his campaign. It is a unique way and it is the first time it has been used by an El Paso candidate for a city election. Svarzbein has argued that it allows him to offer more transparency on how he uses the campaign funds contributed for his run for office.
I came across an interesting expense at a gun store that I’ll share with you later in this post.
However, first I want to share with you what I found in regards to Peter Svarzbein’s advertisement on Jaime Abeytia‘s blog, a criminal who is currently under probation for his latest crime. For someone that espouses being “inclusive and accountable” I find it not only objectionable but also questionable that Peter Svarzbein would allow his campaign to advertise on a criminal’s website.
What does that say about Peter Svarzbein pontificating about “building a better borderplex” as one of his major issues? Are there not any non-criminal websites where he can advertise on? What makes this issue worse is that Jaime Abeytia is not only a criminal but is also currently under the supervision of the court system (probation) for his criminality.
In other words, Jaime Abeytia has some of his civil rights currently suspended because of criminal activities and yet Peter Svarzbein sees no problem paying him $300 for an advertising spot. Very simply, Peter Svarzbein is paying a criminal with campaign contributions.
I realize some of you will argue that it is his money to spend as he sees fit. However, I do not believe it is his money but rather the money of those that support his run for office. He created a special committee to handle his campaign funds and yet I’m not sure all of his contributors understood that he would use the campaign contributions to pay a criminal.
As I continued to review his financial report, I came across another interesting campaign funds expense, this one to a gun shop.
Did Peter Svarzbein Spent Campaign Funds on a Gun or Shooting Classes?
Peter Svarzbein reported an expense of $116.35 on April 3, 2015 paid to Sportsman’s Elite. It was labelled as an “Event Expense” with the description of “Team building exercise.” As a former Texas conceal carry permit holder who took my certifying class at Sportsman’s Elite it immediately caught my attention. Sportsman’s Elite sells weapons, namely guns, accessories, and offers the Texas concealed carry permit certification class. Apparently, it now offers a shooting range as well as NRA educational events. I can’t tell you exactly what the “team building” event was that Svarzbein paid for but according to the Twitter account for Sportsman’s Elite, they had a CHL class scheduled for Saturday, April 4, 2015. Or, it is possible that Svarzbein took some time to shoot a few rounds in the shooting range or participated in another shooting-related event at the gun store. I don’t know.
Regardless, it seems strange to me that a political candidate would spend campaign funds in a gun store especially when his whole mantra of using a Specific Purpose Committee scheme was for being transparent about how he uses the campaign contributions made to his campaign.
Ultimately, the voters will the final arbiters of his campaign expenditures but regardless of the outcome, his questionable spending makes the case for what type of elected official he will be – one that spends your money for his personal whims.
The taxpayers have been put on notice.
Martin, you need a pacifier to ease your whining. Blah blah – Jaime is a criminal heard it over and over on your crappy blog. You blog more about Jaime then anything else. What does it say about your character when candidates won’t even take you up on your ” call to candidates” offer? People don’t even want a part of you when it’s free!
Wow. You are truly a dumbass. No mames guey.
You make a good point when you say some of his civil rights are suspended. I wonder what time his curfew is. Ha, ha I just realized he can’t drink alcohol like the child that he is!
So what did Svarz-bien buy at the gun shop?
he was target shooting. guess whos image was on the target. not even a Highpoint .22 is less than 200 USD. martin, like you “outing” MAX, you are trying too hard. your boss must be bored. maybe scarsbeaner was buying a slingshot to slay Goliath.
Sounds like little Martincito has penis envy, you wrote about the ” criminal” as 50 shades of grey. Your blog isn’t as good as his and your ….wait you can connect the dots to figure out where else you come short.
Martin,
You decieve your readers in your title and the earlier teaser by implying that Peter bought a gun with with campaign funds. Then you go on to say he only spent 123 bucks. Show me 1 gun you can buy for 123 bucks? You go on to claim that you have a conceal carry??? And that you shop at the same store??? You then go on to say it was spent as a team building event. So how is that connecting the dots. Your blog is like watching that show finding big foot….they look and look and never find anything. So you’ve wasted an entire hour. Your writing style is also boring. You are way too verbose and mislead your readers. Overall I think you are probably insecure and uncomfortable in your own skin.
There is a reason no one advertises with you. It is because you have no credibility and no one reads past your first paragraph.
Have a nice day!
all of you criticizing martin for going after jaime and those who hire him blow it out your arse. that pos jaime owes child support in arizona and has owed it for years. somebody needs to drag his arse over there and let arpio deal with him. i dont care if he is a veteran. anyone that doesnt pay their child support is a pos. his blog does not get that many hits either. even rotten peppers noted that he went about 8 post that had zero comments and the ones with comments were usually that manny guy who makes pretty good sense while jaime nearly always answers with go screw yourself 2 or 3 times. why these candidates would advertize on any of these blogs is beyond me, but jamie’s is one i damn sure cant understand. pure idiots imho.
Comments have nothing todo with traffic. Only rotten panties and others that want someone to pay attention to them write comments. I read this boring crap everyday and rarely comment myself. But I’d have to agree, this obsession thing got old a long time ago. I just stop by to see if he has anything good. I’m usually disappointed.
The same useful idiots with a new infantile moniker hurling their sophomoric insults. Yawn. But to be honest, Martin, it is a bit disingenuous and it detracts from your finer point about campaign transparency to entitle this piece a gun purchase and clearly it was a shooting exercise or a lesson. Please don’t be like them. That’s more the Slimes’ style.
Well said Anon.E.Mouse