All candidates for elected office have a keen eye on any opportunity to promote their campaign. They would, in fact, be foolish if they did not. However, there are locations where it is forbidden by law for anyone to solicit campaign contributions. Specifically, this prohibition applies to all federal buildings. As published on the US Senate Select Committee on Ethics website, the law states:
Senate resources may only be used for official purposes. The General Appropriations statute, 31U.S.C §1301, provides that official funds are to be used only for the purposes for which they were appropriated. No official resources may be used to conduct campaign activities. In addition to this general prohibition, there are several criminal statutes that impose additional restrictions on campaign activities by Senate Members and staff: • No Campaign Activity in a Federal Building Senate Members and staff may not receive or solicit campaign contributions in any federal building. 18U.S.C §607.
That’s clear enough, even to a layperson like me. I’m sure all US senators must be aware of this criminal statute. After all, it was only last year when there was all that kerfuffle over a senate candidate conducting an impromptu fundraiser during a radio interview given just off the House floor. That incident prompted a much-publicized probe but it was dropped due to lack of proof. The candidate in question was Tom Cotton. Given the trouble he’s caused since, it’s a shame he wasn’t nailed for that incident. However, what it did do was serve as a reminder to all Congresspersons that statute 18U.S.C §607 exists and applies to them equally.
The Russell Senate Office Building on Constitution Avenue, Washington DC, is indubitably a federal building. It houses the offices of 33 US Senators, including all four of the Republican senators running for president. One of them gave an interview to Fox’s Neil Cavuto on Tuesday. When Cavuto pointed out that the senator was lagging behind four other candidates, he responded by touting his strength in fundraising (emphasis added):
I knew we wouldn't be the leading fundraiser in this race, because we are not the top choice of the entrenched political establishment, but I’m confident we have the resources and [will] continue to build the resources to be able to communicate our message. And obviously if somebody watching this program wants to help us, they should go to marcorubio.com and chip in.
That, Marco Rubio, is a direct appeal for donations.
From this screen grab of that particular interview, it is overwhelmingly obvious that Marco Rubio is inside the building, the Russell Senate Office Building, a federal building, while he is clearly soliciting for campaign funds. In that moment, Marco Rubio violated statute 18U.S.C §607 and any one of his opponents could step up and file a complaint about the interview… whenever they feel threatened by him.