Former Rep. Aaron Schock (R-IL), who in 2015 resigned amid scandal for defrauding taxpayers, is facing renewed scrutiny after being exposed for allegedly working on behalf of a foreign government in exchange for “an honest-to-god gold mine,” Politico reported Monday.
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“No one around Schock could know whether the agreement was real. Like many things in Schock’s life, it could have been a gilded mirage distracting from a more complicated truth,” Politico’s report reads.
“But for much of the year, those who interacted with him saw a man animated by the promise of gold, part of a supposedly eight-figure payday that Schock told business associate Benjamin Papermaster awaited him if he managed to keep Venezuela’s relations with the United States from further souring.”
In 2016, Schock was indicted on criminal charges after being accused of using more than $100,000 in taxpayer dollars and campaign funding on “personal expenses,” per Politico, though the charges were later dropped via a deferred prosecution agreement that saw him admit wrongdoing and pay $100,000 in restitution.
Schock said at the time that after the agreement was reached, he was “focused on the future, not the past,” Politico reported. However, that future, as uncovered by Politico, would involve an alleged plot to influence the second Trump administration in exchange for a potentially huge payout.
“Schock would recount to Papermaster that it was during a meeting with Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez that he heard the promise that bound him to the agenda of those who wanted a softer touch on Venezuela,” Politico’s report reads.
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“If he managed to keep the hawks at bay during Trump’s second term, Schock told Papermaster, Rodriguez said she would award him a piece of her country’s sizable precious metals economy – his own gold mine.”
Despite Schock’s alleged efforts to influence the Trump administration on behalf of a foreign nation, he did not “file a notice of those activities under the Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA),” a law that requires foreign lobbyists to register their lobbying efforts with the federal government. However, legal experts told Politico it was “unclear” whether Schock’s activity would require him to register under FARA.
According to communications reviewed by Politico from Papermaster, Schock’s business associate, the Illinois Republican didn’t register under FARA for one reason.
“He avoided registering, according to Papermaster, because he was intent on keeping the congressional member’s pin that stood as his most prized possession through its ability to grant continued access to the House floor,” Politico’s report reads. “A former lawmaker who registers as a foreign agent loses those privileges.”
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