Sen. Joe Biden has reportedly banned CBS Channel 3 in Philadelphia after its news anchors asked him questions concerning payments made with campaign funds to relatives for consulting fees.
The anchors were asking questions off a recent Washington Times story by Jim McElhatton that reported that Biden has paid more than $2 million in campaign cash to his family members, their businesses and employers over the years, a practice that watchdogs criticize as rife with potential conflicts of interest. McElhatton's report stated:
The money largely flowed from the coffers of Mr. Biden's failed presidential campaign during the past two years to a company that employs his sister and longtime campaign manager, Valerie Biden Owens, according to campaign disclosure filings.
The senator from Delaware also directed campaign legal work to a Washington lobbying and law firm founded by his son R. Hunter Biden, the disclosures show.
Putting family members and their companies on the political payroll is legal if the work is legitimate and charged at market rates, according to the Federal Election Commission. Still, public watchdog groups have long criticized such arrangements.
This comes on the heels of a similar episode where Biden had the campaign cut off access for an Orlando, Fla., television station after its anchor quoted Karl Marx when she asked Biden about Obama's "spreading the wealth" remarks.
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