WILMINGTON, Delaware (CNN) – Christine O'Donnell's Senate campaign is pushing back hard on allegations that she misused election funds by putting them to private use. Leading the counter-offensive is Cleta Mitchell, an attorney and an expert in campaign finance law, who was just retained by the O'Donnell campaign to deal with the allegations.
In an interview with CNN, Mitchell responded to a complaint against O'Donnell filed this week by the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. The group, known as CREW, accuses O'Donnell of spending roughly $20,000 from her failed 2008 campaign for the Senate for personal expenses.
"That is not true," Mitchell told CNN. She accused CREW and its executive director, Melanie Sloan, of libeling O'Donnell and said the campaign is considering a lawsuit against the group.
"She has committed libel per se, slander per se by calling my client names... I've looked at lots of campaign FEC (Federal Election Commission) reports. And the things she (Sloan) is saying are simply not true," Mitchell said in the interview.
Sloan has called O'Donnell "a criminal" and "a crook," in accusing the candidate of tax evasion and a host of other financial improprieties.
Central to the allegations are claims that O'Donnell used 2008 campaign money to pay rent, to buy food and gasoline and even for a bowling outing. CREW says those expenditures occurred in 2009 and early 2010 when, the group says, O'Donnell had no active campaign.
"She did have a campaign because she had gone from running in 2008 to running in 2010," Mitchell told CNN Tuesday. "She was already running... she moved from one campaign to another and frankly the campaign headquarters was in her home - that's not unusual."
For her part, Sloan denies allegations her group is politically biased and says it is acting on information provided to it by a former O'Donnell campaign official.
"We've added up what we think is over $20,000 in expenses that were improper, that were money she used - campaign funds put to personal use. But it's really hard to say, because there's been no audit of her campaign. The fact is, once you start seeing this trend … the odds are there are many more expenses that we don't know about," Sloan told CNN in an interview.
Campaign officials are upset that the CREW complaint is getting so much press.
"You see, what the problem with Melanie Sloan and FEC complaints is you get to make big headlines, with lots of allegations and two or three years later, when they're dismissed as being baseless, there's no press. And so Melanie Sloan waited until Christine O'Donnell won the Republican nomination and less than a week later files a complaint that she's obviously had for a long time, just ready to go," Mitchell said.
"Social Currency is the app that lets you shop with all your friends, whether they're down the street or across the country. Tell them what you're buying, where you're finding it, how much you're spending, and what you want. Even better-find out what your friends are buying, too," according to a press release.
The Currency site features a Social Currency leaderboard for users with the most check-ins. Social Currency users can get "offers badges like "Thrifty Spender" and "Super Shutterbug," which the site says will soon show up on users' Foursquare badges list (UPDATE: The site originally said badges would soon show up in Foursquare; it has been changed to say they will only be viewable in Social Currency. The badges look very similar to Foursquare badges).
This new app represents another A-list brand bagged by Foursquare. American Express and its partners (disclaimer: Federated Media sells ads on ReadWriteWeb) chose the Foursquare platform over Twitter or Facebook, even though both have more users and the latter offers location check-ins.
The companies were clearly interested in Foursquare's game mechanics in addition to its social network. Users "play" Social Currency with their friends and every action results in points and "unlocking" badges.
There are arguably better apps for shopping check-ins, tracking your purchases and making shopping social. But the Social Currency app is well-made, looks just like Foursquare and includes some neat features, like adding a photo of an item you "want" to a "birthday" or "Christmas" list, and being able to comment on your friends' actions. By collaborating with Foursquare, American Express took a boring effort to "extend personal finance education" and made it social and fresh.
What do you think? Would you use this app?
ca big white booty
'Fox <b>News</b> Sunday' to Host Kentucky Senate Debate - NYTimes.com
Jack Conway, Kentucky's attorney general and the Democratic candidate for Senate, and Rand Paul, the Republican nominee, have agreed to a live debate on "Fox News Sunday" on Oct. 3.
Diane Sawyer: ABC World <b>News</b> Goes Home: Looking for What Works in <b>...</b>
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'Fox <b>News</b> Sunday' to Host Kentucky Senate Debate - NYTimes.com
Jack Conway, Kentucky's attorney general and the Democratic candidate for Senate, and Rand Paul, the Republican nominee, have agreed to a live debate on "Fox News Sunday" on Oct. 3.
Diane Sawyer: ABC World <b>News</b> Goes Home: Looking for What Works in <b>...</b>
We at ABC's World News are heading out to search for innovative ideas that are helping turn the economy around. Real change is often born out of a simple act. And one ripple can lead to a powerful transformation.
Small Business <b>News</b>: An Owner's Manual
If only there were an owner's manual that came with your small business telling you what works, what doesn't and what are the best ways to move ahead in your.
big white booty
'Fox <b>News</b> Sunday' to Host Kentucky Senate Debate - NYTimes.com
Jack Conway, Kentucky's attorney general and the Democratic candidate for Senate, and Rand Paul, the Republican nominee, have agreed to a live debate on "Fox News Sunday" on Oct. 3.
Diane Sawyer: ABC World <b>News</b> Goes Home: Looking for What Works in <b>...</b>
We at ABC's World News are heading out to search for innovative ideas that are helping turn the economy around. Real change is often born out of a simple act. And one ripple can lead to a powerful transformation.
Small Business <b>News</b>: An Owner's Manual
If only there were an owner's manual that came with your small business telling you what works, what doesn't and what are the best ways to move ahead in your.
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