GOP congressman gave jobs to his lover and to his fiancée’s daughter, New York Times says

(CNN) — New York Rep. Anthony D’Esposito, one of the GOP’s most endangered House incumbents, reportedly gave both his lover and his fiancée’s daughter part-time jobs in his district office on Long Island, a potential violation of House ethics rules.

D’Esposito hired the pair shortly after taking office in 2023, according to The New York Times, together paying them nearly $30,000 in taxpayer funds, records of which are publicly available. The House of Representatives’ code of conduct forbids members from employing close family members.

The report could be a significant blow to his already tenuous path to reelection. D’Esposito is locked in a tight rematch with Democrat Laura Gillen, whom he defeated by fewer than 10,000 votes two years ago. His victory then flipped the South Shore district now considered by both parties to be a critical battleground in the fight for control of the House.

“My personal life has never interfered with my ability to deliver results for New York’s 4th district, and I have upheld the highest ethical standards of personal conduct,” the congressman said in a statement to CNN. He called the story, the details of which he has not denied, “a slimy, partisan ‘hit piece.’”

D’Esposito ignored multiple minutes of questions on the Capitol complex Monday evening, saying only – without evidence – that he believes the report was politically motivated. Both his fiancée and lover, in brief conversations with the New York Times, confirmed the reporting.

A former detective in the New York Police Department, D’Esposito in or around 2017 also helped his fiancée and her son obtain municipal jobs after he was appointed to the Hempstead town council. Gillen previously served as the supervisor in Hempstead, the country’s largest township. She was elected in November 2017.

D’Esposito, whose family has long been deeply connected to the estimable Nassau County Republican political machine, was elected in the same cycle as disgraced, now-former Rep. George Santos, who flipped the neighboring 3rd Congressional District before being exposed as a serial fabulist. Santos pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft and wire fraud charges. Sentencing in that case is set for February.

As that scandal escalated, D’Esposito, in the state’s 4th Congressional District, emerged as one Santos’ chief critics. He called for his colleague to resign and, during a news conference with local GOP leaders which he joined remotely from the Capitol, made his home office available for constituent services to people in Santos’s district.

House Speaker Mike Johnson stood behind D’Esposito in comments to reporters Tuesday.

Even though Johnson said he has not spoken to D’Esposito yet and doesn’t know the details of the allegations, the speaker pointed to D’Esposito’s statement and added, “It’s a partisan hit piece that would not surprise anyone, and a tight election cycle in a seat that’s … hotly contested, but he’s been a very strong advocate for his district.”

Johnson added, “I know the people of his district, and they are, they’re great champions of him and he of them.”

House GOP Whip Tom Emmer deflected when asked about an ethics investigation by talking about this week’s critical funding bill.

Fellow New Yorkers were also silent in the wake of the report. GOP Rep. Marc Molinaro said he has spoken to D’Esposito but declined to comment further.

“I have, and I don’t comment on people’s personal lives,” Molinaro said.

When CNN asked D’Esposito’s fellow Long Islander, GOP Rep. Nick LaLota, about the report, he said he was on the phone.

D’Esposito recently welcomed former President Donald Trump to his district, where the GOP presidential nominee hosted a rally at the Nassau Coliseum for Long Island Republicans desperate to maintain their gains from 2022 in the New York City suburbs. New York Republicans flipped four seats in that election and won another close race further upstate in the midterms – providing a decisive boost to the GOP ranks as the party won a narrow majority.

CNN’s Haley Talbot, Annie Grayer, Sam Fossum and Manu Raju contributed to this report.

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