Matt Gaetz' Campaign Receives $17K from Donor Connected with Russian agent
Local News Staff 
Congressman Matt Gaetz once again met the ire of the media with recent reports indicating a Russia connection to his campaign. Gaetz accepted $17k from a donor with connections to a Russian agent.
George and Erica O'Neill donated $17k to Gaetz (with George O’Neill being the great-grandson of John D. Rockefeller Jr). O'Neill maintained a strong friendship with Russian spy Maria Butina, convicted on espionage charges for "pro-gun" activities in the US. O'Neill sought to host "friendship dinners" between Russian officials and politicos in the United States, hosting such an event in 2017.
Mark Lombardo, Gaetz Republican opponent, responded by lambasting the decision to accept the cash.
“Gaetz desperately needs donor cash to pay for his child sex-trafficking defense — and has proven that he’ll take money from anyone,” the Lombardo campaign said. “Because he is a member of the Armed Services Committee, Matt Gaetz’s behavior, including on foreign soil, has left him vulnerable to blackmail and makes him a threat to our national security.”
The Gaetz campaign spent $745,887 in the second quarter. He spent $44,000 on compliance consulting and $16,336 for air travel. The campaign has $1,371,706 cash on hand.
Maria Butina's espionage case named O'Neill, one of Gaetz' major donors, as US person 2.
