Ethics panel directs Cawthorn to pay $15,000 over crypto promotion

Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.), who is leaving Congress next month after losing his primary, was directed by the House Ethics Committee Tuesday to pay more than $15,000 related to his ownership and promotion of a cryptocurrency.

The big picture: The report caps off a brief and ignominious congressional tenure for Cawthorn, who spent much of it engulfed in scandal.

Driving the news: A report released by the panel, which followed a seven-month investigation, concluded there was “substantial evidence” the North Carolina lawmaker improperly received and promoted “Let’s Go Brandon Coin,” and later failed to disclose his ownership on time.

• The panel directed Cawthorn to pay $14,237 to an “appropriate charitable organization” by the end of December and another $1,000 in late filing fees to the Treasury Department within 14 days of the report’s release.
• “ISC intended that its Report serve as an admonishment of Representative Cawthorn’s conduct,” the report says, alleging Cawthorn “acted in a manner that did not reflect creditably upon the House.”

Of note: The report found “no evidence” to support allegations earlier this year that Cawthorn had an improper relationship with a staffer.