"I always intended to pay my legal fees once the lawyers send me a bill"

Ahhh, the perpetually prevaricating Congressman Jean Schmidt is back in the news this afternoon.

COASTers may recall that for three and a half years, Jean Schmidt accepted a total of $550,000 in legal fees associated with her legal attacks on David Krikorian.  This was not the provision of pro bono legal services by the attorneys involved, but a D.C. non-profit was actually writing checks every month to her attorneys from three law firms.

These payments were a violation of House Rules, and intentionally mis-reporting the same on her financial disclosure forms (and she did repeatedly mis-report it) is a felony.

Thus, when caught red-handed, Schmidt's excuse was that she had no idea the Turkish Coalition of America was paying her legal fees, that she never had received an invoice for the services, and that when an invoice was rendered, she fully intended promptly to pay the same.

Well, one year ago, the House Ethics Committee ruled that Schmidt had accepted an illegal gift from the TCA, and that she had to pay it back.  Thus, she finally, a year ago, "received her bill."

Ummm, but she has not paid it back.  Indeed, since ordered to do so by the House Ethics Committee, she has raised and paid back a total of $5,010 in her legal expenses fund, and the Enquirer reports today that in the second quarter of 2012 she raised precisely....nothing.

So, we are reminded each quarter of the truth of Jean Schmidt's promise to pay her fees just as soon as an invoice is issued to her, just like so much else that she has told us over the years.

Oh yeah.
The 2nd Quarter report is here.