Bush ethics lawyer on Wynn: Parties should return money from ‘perverts’

A former ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush on Saturday accused both major political parties of being “full of hypocrites,” saying parties should return campaign contributions from high-profile figures accused of sexual misconduct.

During a segment on MSNBC’s “AM Joy,” Richard Painter pointed to newly revealed allegations of sexual misconduct against casino mogul and Republican National Committee (RNC) finance chairman Steve Wynn, saying the allegations show both parties have trouble with major backers.

“When it comes to money and politics, both parties are full of hypocrites,” Painter said. “What this is about is the dependence of both parties on people who have a lot of money.”

“That’s why Donald Trump likes Mr. Wynn,” Painter continued. “He [Wynn] has a lot of money, he brings money into the party, into the political campaign. That’s why the Democrats liked Harvey Weinstein.”

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Painter then called on members of the RNC and its Democratic counterpart to see that all donations from Weinstein, Wynn and other mega-donors are returned.

“We need to get both parties to return all the money from all these mega-donors — and I don’t care if they’re perverts like these two men, or people who want to pollute the environment, destroy the planet [like] the Koch brothers, or people who want to bankroll white nationalism like the Mercer family.”

“Both parties are addicted to money,” he added.

Democrats blasted the RNC on Friday after a Wall Street Journal investigation uncovered decades of sexual harassment allegations against Wynn.

Wynn denied allegations of sexual assault and harassment in a statement to the Journal, though the RNC has faced calls from Republicans to remove him as finance chairman.

“The idea that I ever assaulted any woman is preposterous. We find ourselves in a world where people can make allegations, regardless of the truth, and a person is left with the choice of weathering insulting publicity or engaging in multi-year lawsuits. It is deplorable for anyone to find themselves in this situation,” Wynn said.