Report: Loretta Sanchez used campaign money for wardrobe

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin wasn't the only candidate in last month's election to spend campaign funds for some new threads.

Rep. Loretta Sanchez, an Orange County Democrat, is among five candidates in the recent election named by the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington to have spent hundreds of dollars on clothing, allegedly violating a ban on using campaign money for personal use. Sanchez is the sister of Rep. Linda Sanchez, a Democrat who represents Whittier, Lakewood, Paramount, Cerritos, La Mirada, Lynwood and Southgate. The two have the distinction of being the first sisters elected to Congress.

The other candidates also named for misusing their campaign money are Rob Andrews of New Jersey, Republican candidates Bill Dew of Utah and William Breazeale of North Carolina, and Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr.

Here are the details, according to an Associated Press article:

CREW's review of campaign finance reports found Dew's campaign spending $1,089 on clothing for him at Men's Wearhouse; Sanchez's campaign spending about $189 on "meeting clothing" for Sanchez and $145 on clothing for an aide; Breazeale's campaign purchasing $1,000 in clothing for Breazeale at a men's store in North Carolina; and $954 in clothing purchased by Andrews' campaign after Andrews' luggage was lost. Barr aide Andrew MacPherson received a $500 clothing allowance from Barr's campaign, a filing with the FEC shows.