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Josh Hawley celebrated his most recent fundraising haul… by blowing $75,000 on a new car???

Hawley’s campaign declined to comment on the new car.

Mark

Apr 18, 2024 - 20:00

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Josh Hawley celebrated his most recent fundraising haul… by blowing $75,000 on a new car???

March 23, 2022; Washington, DC, USA; Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) asks questions during the Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing for Supreme Court Associate Justice nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson on March 21, 2022 in Washington. Judge Jackson was nominated by President Joe Biden to replace Associate Justice Stephen Breyer, who plans to retire at the end of the term. If confirmed, Judge Jackson will be the first Black woman to sit on the United States Supreme Court. Mandatory Credit: Jasper Colt-USA TODAY

This just in: Josh Hawley has a new set of wheels. Courtesy of money funneled into his reelection campaign.

The fist-pumping, quick-footed, anti-LGBTQ+ Missouri senator raked in a reported $2.5 million in the first quarter of 2024. To celebrate, he went to his local Buick/GMC dealership and dropped almost $75,000 on a new vehicle, according to FEC filings.

The Kansas City Star reports:

One of Hawley’s higher ticket costs was a vehicle from a car dealership outside of St. Louis. The campaign’s filing with the Federal Elections Commission did not disclose the make or model of the vehicle, but on the dealership’s website, the price tag is in the range of a GMC Yukon.
Hawley’s campaign declined to comment on the car, but it could be an attempt to save money in the long run. Statewide campaigns often put lots of mileage on vehicles and, rather than rent a car for each trip, it could help bring down the cost over the course of a long campaign.

But not everything is as it seems.

Hawley’s $2.5 million fundraising haul might look impressive at first glance. But it turns out, over $1.5 million of it was just a money transfer from his victory committee to his reelection campaign. It didn’t come from individual donors or even Missouri voters.

His pro-LGBTQ+ Democratic opponent, Lucas Kunce, was quick to point this out on ~~Twitter~~ X.

I can't tell you enough how grateful I am to have a coalition of real people like you backing our campaign. This is our chance to take this U.S. Senate seat back for working families. We won’t waste it. pic.twitter.com/aLCMecJfQM— Lucas Kunce (@LucasKunceMO) April 16, 2024

Kunce, a 13-year Marine vet who served in both Iraq and Afghanistan, first rose to gay political prominence when he ran for Senate in 2022 and he shared a photo of himself running in a pair of short-shorts… sparking an online fury.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Lucas Kunce (@lucaskuncemo)

Though widely considered the underdog in the race, Kunce’s campaign just announced it pulled in over $2.25 million in the first quarter of 2024, setting a new record for a Senate challenger in the state and bringing his total cash on hand up to $3.3 million.

Unlike Hawley, who hates gay people, 41-year-old Kunce supports outlawing conversion therapy at the federal level and has said he would support the Equality Act. He has also vowed to help end violence against trans people and stand up for gender affirming care for trans youth.